NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg defiantly declared on Thursday that Ukraine’s “rightful place” is in the military alliance and pledged more support for the country on his first visit to Kyiv since Russia’s invasion just over a year ago.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Stoltenberg, who has been instrumental in marshalling support from NATO members, to push for even more from them, including warplanes, artillery and armoured equipment.The Kremlin has given various justifications for going to war, but repeated on Thursday that preventing Ukraine from joining NATO is still a key goal of its invasion, arguing that Kyiv’s membership in the alliance would pose an existential threat to Russia.
NATO leaders said in 2008 that Ukraine would join the alliance one day, and Stoltenberg has repeated that promise throughout the war, though the organisation has established no pathway or timetable for membership.
“Let me be clear, Ukraine’s rightful place is in the Euro-Atlantic family,” Stoltenberg told a news conference. “Ukraine’s rightful place is in NATO.”
Zelenskyy said he was grateful for an invitation to a NATO summit in July in Vilnius, Lithuania, but said his country needs a roadmap for becoming a member.
“The time has come for the (alliance’s) leaders to define the prospects of Ukraine’s acquisition of NATO membership, to define the algorithm of Ukraine’s movement towards this goal, and to define security guarantees for our state for the period of such movement — that is, for the period before NATO membership,” he said.
In other developments, a large explosion hit the Russian city of Belgorod late Thursday, and the Defence Ministry said one of its Su-34 warplanes accidentally discharged ammunition over the city about 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the Ukrainian border. The government gave no further details. Belgorod regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said the blast injured at least two people, damaged homes and left a crater about 20 metres (65 feet) across.The fighting in recent months has become a war of attrition, with neither side able to gain momentum. But Ukraine has recently received sophisticated weapons from its Western allies and is expected to launch a counteroffensive in coming weeks. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Moscow could use “all means available” — a phrase some see as a threat to use nuclear weapons — in response to an attack on its territory if Ukraine attempts to recapture Moscow-occupied areas.
