Zelensky will attend NATO summit in Vilnius

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky plans to personally visit the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Vilnius in July.

In an interview with BNS, Ukrainian Ambassador to Lithuania Petro Beshta was asked whether the Ukrainian leader would be at the summit.

"We're planning it. The first thing we need is an invitation because Ukraine is not a member of NATO. We hope to receive it and hope for a radical change in the situation related to the war in Ukraine," the ambassador said.

Since the start of the russian invasion on February 24 last year, Zelensky has visited the United States, Great Britain, France, and Brussels. Beshta emphasized that these visits, which began at the end of 2022, were rather exceptions since Zelensky should remain in Kyiv.

"At the meeting in Vilnius, we expect an unambiguous statement that as soon as the war ends, Ukraine will become a member of NATO," Beshta said.

Earlier, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg noted that the priority for the Alliance now is not Ukraine's membership but helping it to win in the fight against russian aggression.

As Rubryka reported, on September 30, 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine had signed an application for accelerated accession to the North Atlantic Alliance.

Canada and the Baltic countries have declared their support for Ukraine's application to join the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO).