Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Turkey supports Ukraine’s NATO membership aspirations, but he also urged for a ‘return to peace efforts’ to end the conflict that has now raged for 500 days since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
‘There is no doubt that Ukraine deserves membership of NATO,’ Erdogan told a joint press conference with the Ukrainian president in Istanbul early on Saturday, adding that the two sides should go back to peace talks.
The president of Ukraine has made a strong case for his beleaguered nation’s inclusion in the Western military alliance, claiming that Ukraine has emerged as Europe’s final line of defense against Russian invasion.
Prior to the NATO summit on July 11–12, Zelenskyy traveled to the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Bulgaria to rally support for Ukraine’s application to join the military alliance.
In Prague, he won a pledge of support for Ukraine to join NATO ‘as soon as the war is over’, and in Sofia, he secured backing for membership ‘as soon as conditions allow’.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also reaffirmed his view that Ukraine would become a member.
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However, the timeline for Ukraine’s membership remains unclear.
On Friday, the United States dampened Ukraine’s hopes of any rapid accession to the alliance, saying this week’s summit would not result in a NATO membership invitation.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the Vilnius summit ‘will be an important moment on that pathway towards membership’, but that Ukraine has “further steps it needs to take before membership in NATO”.
Africa Today News, New York reports that NATO countries have debated when and how Ukraine can become a member and under what circumstances. Member countries such as Germany insist that certain conditions must be met, including the military being under civilian and democratic control.
It remains unclear what exactly Ukraine will be offered at the summit in the Lithuanian capital, and Zelenskyy has acknowledged that Kyiv is unlikely to be able to join NATO while at war with Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened unspecified action if Ukraine joins NATO.