MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st June, 2023) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made it clear to NATO leaders that he will not attend the alliance's summit in Vilnius in July unless he is provided with a road map on Kiev's accession to the organization, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing sources.
Earlier this year, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine would not become a NATO member before the end of the armed conflict, although adding that he would still like the allies to support Kiev by inviting it to join the organization.
In late September, Zelenskyy announced that Kiev was applying for fast-track membership to NATO. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, commenting on Zelenskyy's statement, reiterated the alliance's commitment to the right of each country to determine its own path and to NATO's "open door" policy, but stressed that the alliance would concentrate its efforts on assisting Ukraine to defend itself.
