More than sixty political experts called on NATO to refrain from promises regarding the admission of Ukraine to the North Atlantic Alliance at the upcoming summit in Washington from July 9 to 11. According to the Politico newspaper, according to them, Ukraine's accession to NATO may have negative consequences, including the risk of changing the country into an arena of long-term confrontation between major nuclear powers and promoting the interests of Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Experts believe that the rapprochement of NATO with the promises of Ukraine's future membership may push Moscow to further military actions. They claim that Russian challenges can be resolved without Ukraine's involvement in the alliance.
In addition, experts warn about the possible consequences of Ukraine's accession to NATO, in particular the activation of Article 5 of the Charter, which obliges allies to protect alliance members.
The letter was initiated by William Ruger, president of the American Institute for Economic Research, and Steven Wertheim, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment.
According to the publication, other analysts disagreed with these positions.
Last week, RAND Corp. researchers expressed the opinion that the Allies would have won if the summit had offered Ukraine clear conditions for its future membership in NATO.
The Atlantic Council is also pushing for Ukraine's membership in the alliance, arguing that it would prove to Kyiv that Western support is sustainable.
The Biden administration has refrained from supporting immediate membership for Ukraine, but several senior officials recently expressed their intention to offer a "bridge" to the alliance at a summit in Washington. Officials also noted that NATO will offer Ukraine a new "headquarters" for managing military aid. These steps are seen as a signal to both Kyiv's allies and Moscow, which can hope for a change in the positions of Western countries in supporting the war. The idea of creating a special mission belongs to the administration of President Joe Biden, which is open to giving Ukraine something significant beyond full membership in NATO.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that he hopes for the allies' agreement to participate in the coalition for the training of the Ukrainian military.
"Our support is not aimed at bringing NATO into the conflict, but at ensuring that Ukraine can exercise its right to self-defense," said the Secretary General.
Earlier, the English edition of the Daily Telegraph reported that, according to American officials of the State Department, Ukraine will not receive an invitation to join NATO due to corruption problems. The alliance will demand "additional steps" from Kyiv before continuing negotiations on its membership.
According to the publication, the position of NATO allies will be announced in a communique after the summit in Washington. The representative of the Pentagon noted that Ukraine received from NATO diplomats and officials a list of reforms that must be implemented before the accession negotiations continue.
Previously, the permanent representative of the US to NATO, Julian Smith, said that the alliance does not plan to send Ukraine an invitation to join the summit in Washington, which will be held from July 9 to 11.
Foreign ministers of 35 NATO partner countries, including Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, are also invited to the summit.
In September 2022, Ukraine submitted an application to join NATO in an accelerated manner, but no clear terms of admission have been determined. At this year's summit, the alliance is not expected to extend an invitation to full membership to Kyiv, offering instead long-term financial aid and support in the form of air defense systems, including the Patriots.
Currently, the Ukrainian delegation, together with the head of the Office of the President, Andriy Yermak, is on a visit to the United States, where they met with the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and the President's National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan for consultations on defense, energy and the upcoming NATO summit.
