Czech President: Ukraine is invited to NATO after end of war
President of the Czech Republic Petr Pavel said this at the international conference "Media and Ukraine" organized by Czech Radio on June 22, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
"Issuing an invitation while the conflict is ongoing is like treading water. We need to stick to the real possibilities, and they consist in the fact that the Allies say: as soon as the war is over, we will start the process of granting membership. This, in my opinion, is more fair and rational, and for Ukraine, it is a strong statement that I hope Ukraine will receive at the summit in Vilnius," Pavel said.
He emphasized the necessity to increase assistance for the success of the counteroffensive. This will be discussed at the NATO summit, especially long-term support.
"We have to support Ukraine in the long term... The alternative to Ukraine's failure is chaos and much bigger problems that we will face in the future," Pavel said.
Commenting on the progress of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, the former general did not call it "disappointing" what is happening now.
"It was quite clear that when the counteroffensive started, it would face a very well-prepared defense. Russia had several months to do so and was intensively building up its defense... Going against such a defense when the forces are... more or less equal is a very difficult thing. From this point of view, what we are seeing now is more of an initial phase that will rather test how strong the defense is, what the capabilities are. What will happen next will be much more powerful than what we are seeing now, because Ukraine has not yet deployed all the forces it has prepared for a counteroffensive," the former NATO general said.
He emphasized the importance of explanatory work in partner countries to avoid disappointment due to "not being successful fast enough," which could not have been. According to the former military commander, it would rather be an unexpected surprise if the Russian positions were immediately broken through.
"A major operation has its own rules," Pavel stated, recalling his own warnings, which he made based on his military experience and his habit of assessing the situation realistically rather than overly optimistically.
"If we want to ensure that Russia is defeated in Ukraine, and this is entirely in our national interest, we must continue to support Ukraine at all levels, as we have done so far: humanitarian, financial, and military materials. We must create political and economic pressure on Russia. At international forums, we must consolidate a negative attitude towards Russian aggression so that as many states as possible have a negative attitude towards Russian aggression and unequivocally call Russia guilty of war," the Czech president summarized, adding that his country has been one of Ukraine's most active partners since the beginning of the war.
The conference takes place in the year when Czech Radio celebrates its 100th anniversary.
It is worth noting that the Czech Radio website was hacked on the day of the conference.
Earlier today, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that Ukraine hopes to receive specifics on the terms of accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization during the July NATO summit in Vilnius.
