NATO states avoiding issue of Ukraine's joining alliance – Politico
Politico writes that NATO countries are avoiding the question of Ukraine joining the alliance (Photo:REUTERS/Ints Kalnins)
For many Western officials, the question of Ukraine's accession to NATO is a topic they will not touch, and if pressed, they will give memorized, short and mechanical answers, Politico reported on Dec. 6.
"The verboten (forbidden) subject? Ukraine’s potential NATO membership," the article says.
The publication writes that "it’s an issue so potentially combustible that many NATO allies try to avoid even talking about it."
The journalists pointed out that when Ukraine requested an accelerated accession process in September, NATO publicly reaffirmed its open-door policy, but did not give a concrete answer.
"And last week, when NATO foreign ministers met, their final statement simply pointed to a vague 2008 pledge that Ukraine would someday join the club," the article reads.
Politico notes that there are different reasons for this situation.
First, NATO is split on how, when, and in some cases even if Ukraine should join.
Second, countries do not want to "provoke the Kremlin further," knowing about Putin's "hypersensitivity" to NATO's eastward expansion.
"And most notably, NATO membership would legally require allies to come to Ukraine’s aid in case of attack — a prospect many won’t broach," Politico said.
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