Lithuania’s MFA seeks concrete steps at Vilnius summit to integrate Ukraine into NATO

Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Mantas Adomėnas says that the NATO Summit in Vilnius will be successful if there is clear progress on the political track of Ukraine's integration into the Alliance.

"The NATO Summit will be successful if there is clear progress on the political track of Ukraine's integration into NATO. At the same time, it is clear that the content of the declaration and the essence of the planned decisions are still at the stage of discussion, so it is too early to talk about it. But we and our partners – their circle is expanding, by the way – seek concrete steps to integrate Ukraine into the Alliance," Adomėnas told Ukrinform in an interview.

He added that negotiations were ongoing to ensure Ukraine’s representation at the summit at the highest level.

The Lithuanian diplomat pointed to another important component of the future summit – strengthening the defense of NATO's eastern flank. "We see positive changes in Poland and other neighboring countries. But it is disturbing that the situation in the Baltic states is the same as a year ago, before the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine. Therefore, progress in this direction is also much needed," Adomėnas stressed.

As reported, on Thursday, April 6, the Parliament of Lithuania adopted a resolution for the NATO Summit in Vilnius which includes an official invitation to Ukraine to join the Alliance.

The NATO Summit will be held in Vilnius on July 11-12. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg invited President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky to participate.