PRESS RELEASE : Ukraine is welcome to NATO, yet not by all members of the Alliance – Volodymyr Zelenskyy

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 17 February 2022.

Ukraine has been moving towards NATO membership for a long time, but, as in many other issues of sovereign choice, our country is being opposed on the path to Euro-Atlantic integration. The Head of State said this during a conversation with media representatives in Mariupol, Donetsk region.

“NATO is one of the issues that puts pressure on Ukraine. The main issue is Ukraine’s independence and its independent choice in all issues, and Ukraine has been fighting for its right to this for many years,” the President stressed.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine has chosen the course of NATO membership for its own security, and has been moving in this direction for a long time, but the distance to the Alliance for our country is not reduced.

“And this is not a philosophical question, there are specific reasons – opposition from Russia, which does not want Ukraine to be a member of NATO, and from some countries – members of the Alliance. And there are no secrets in this,” he said.

At the same time, Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that Russia is now using the NATO issue as an excuse for the deployment of their troops on Ukraine’s borders, and some European countries “are playing along in this”.

“But you shouldn’t distort the facts. Our territories have been occupied, the army is on our borders,” the Head of State stressed.

The President noted that the geopolitical course of Ukraine is enshrined in our Constitution, and this is indeed the choice of the Ukrainian people.

“But it is not the choice of the Ukrainian people when we will be there, as it depends not only on us – 30 countries must unanimously agree on this decision,” said the President, adding that the possibility of putting the NATO issue to a referendum is not being considered.