Ukraine's accession to NATO is vital decision

Joining NATO will provide Ukraine with long-term security guarantees and ensure economic stability.

According to Ukrinform, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Rostyslav Shurma said this in an interview with CNN.

He noted that Sweden's recent accession to NATO after many years of negotiations is a good example of the path that Ukraine should take. Shurma emphasized that Ukraine's accession to the Alliance is "an absolutely vital decision."

"I think that this [Sweden’s accession to NATO] is a very good example of the path we have to go through, because Ukraine's accession to NATO is an absolutely vital decision. Russia will exist for decades, hundreds of years, and we have to be able to defend ourselves and pay for this defense," Shurma said.

In his opinion, to achieve these goals, Ukraine must have a stable economy. Currently, the key factor that hinders the development of the Ukrainian economy is the physical protection of cities, companies, enterprises and seaports from attacks by Russia, Shurma added.

Read also: Finland’s Stubb: NATO drill sending message to Russia

"For the most part, these are military risks that prevent investors from investing in Ukraine. And perhaps the only solution to this problem will be to obtain security guarantees. Not just bilateral agreements, but security guarantees that business will trust, and business will trust NATO," the deputy chief of staff explained.

As Ukrinform reported, on March 7, Sweden officially became the new 32nd NATO member.