Ukraine's NATO membership and security guarantees: Zelensky, Kallas sign declaration

The signing ceremony took place as part of a working trip to Zhytomyr region, Deputy Head of the President’s Office Ihor Zhovkva posted on Facebook.

According to him, Zelensky and Kallas discussed a wide range of issues of cooperation in strengthening security, ways to further increase pressure on the Russian aggressor, coordination of cooperation in the reconstruction of Ukraine, as well as Ukraine's path towards joining the EU and NATO.

Zhovkva informed that the parties signed a Joint Declaration following the meeting which, among other things, enshrined support for the Ukrainian Peace Formula and readiness for close cooperation to hold Russia to account, including through the creation of a special international tribunal for the crime of aggression, as well as the need to develop a legal framework for the practical use of frozen Russian assets for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

In addition, the deputy head noted that the declaration confirms Estonia's support for Ukraine's EU membership and praises our progress in implementing the recommendations of the European Commission.

"Separately, the Declaration points out the readiness to cooperate to bring Ukraine closer to NATO membership, in particular in the context of the NATO Summit in Vilnius in July, as well as the obligation to coordinate joint actions to guarantee Ukraine's security even before our membership," Zhovkva noted, adding that this is the 10th joint declaration on Ukraine's support for NATO.

He added that Estonia became the 10th country of the Alliance (after Czech Republic, Belgium, Montenegro, Lithuania, Poland, Italy, Latvia, Iceland, and Slovenia) to formalize its support for Ukrainian NATO membership in similar declarations.

At the same time, the official announced that new declarations will be signed "literally in a few days".

"The ultimate goal is clear and understandable: Ukraine's gaining full-fledged membership as soon as possible. In the meantime, we are already working to create a mechanism for effective security guarantees which we must receive from the Alliance states even now, even before joining NATO. There are new agreements with our partners, further unwavering support for Ukraine, and inspired work to speed up Ukraine's movement on the way towards the EU and NATO ahead," Zhovkva emphasized.

As reported, Prime Minister of the Republic of Estonia Kaja Kallas arrived in Ukraine on April 24.

Photo: President’s Office