Ukraine will skip step on path to NATO membership – Stoltenberg

The bloc’s secretary general says Kiev will not have to go through the Membership Action Plan, unlike other candidates

NATO leaders will “send a clear and positive signal” to Kiev regarding its desire to join the military alliance, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told journalists ahead of a two-day summit in Lithuania. Ukraine will be able to skip one of the normal steps for candidates, he suggested.

Stoltenberg has proposed that member states “remove the requirement for a Membership Action Plan (MAP)” for Kiev. This would change the accession path “from a two-step process to a one-step process,” he explained during a press conference on Tuesday.

Bypassing MAP is one of the three elements in a proposed multi-year program for Ukraine, according to the NATO chief. Another involves the country moving closer to the US-led military organization by ensuring “full interoperability between Ukrainian forces and NATO forces,” meaning Kiev would predominantly use Western-made weapons.

Kiev will also be tied to NATO politically through a new Ukraine-NATO council, the inaugural meeting of which will be held on Wednesday. The event will be attended by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, Stoltenberg said.