Kyiv, Sep 30 (UNI) Ukraine is applying to join NATO in a fast-track manner, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday, media reports said.
"De facto, we have already completed our path to NATO. De facto, we have already proven interoperability with the Alliance’s standards, they are real for Ukraine - real on the battlefield and in all aspects of our interaction. We trust each other, we help each other and we protect each other.
This is what the Alliance is. De facto. Today, Ukraine is applying to make it de jure. Under a procedure consistent with our significance for the protection of our entire community. Under an accelerated procedure," Zelenskyy said in a statement.
In late 2021, Russia published its security suggestions for NATO and the United States as tensions flared up around Ukraine. Moscow specifically requested guarantees that the alliance would not expand eastward to include Kiev and Tbilisi, to which Washington replied by insisting it would not allow anyone to infringe on NATO's open-door policy, providing for a right of each state to independently decide on whether to join the bloc.
On February 24, Russia began a military operation in Ukraine responding to calls for help from the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk as Ukraine intensified its attacks. Western countries with US and NATO at the helm responded by imposing comprehensive sanctions against Moscow while also ramping up their military support for Kiev.
In April, Russia sent a note to NATO member states condemning their military assistance to Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that any arms shipments on the Ukrainian territory would be "legitimate targets" for Russian forces.
NATO has since denied it is party to conflict in Ukraine despite deploying its instructors to the country and training Ukrainian troops to operate NATO hardware.
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