NATO’s Secretary General: Ukraine may join the Alliance

For starters the decision on joining the organization should come from Ukrainians themselves.

NATO confirms Ukraine’s right for membership in the organization, if Ukraine meets the Alliance’s requirements and Ukrainians support joining the organization, NATO’s press-service reported.

On Wednesday a draft law was registered in Ukraine’s Supreme Council in support of Ukraine’s NATO membership. The draft law provides for introducing changes in Ukraine’s laws “On the basics of Ukraine’s national security” and “On the principles of domestic and foreign policy”, according to which Euro-Atlantic integration and NATO membership get established in the legislation, Korrespondent reports.

“This is up to Ukrainians to make the decision on their future relations with NATO. As you remember, back at the NATO summit in Bucharest in 2008 the Alliance made the decision that Ukraine and also Georgia, by the way, would become NATO members, if they opt for that and under the condition that they meet the necessary criteria. That decision remains valid”, - the press-service quotes NATO’s Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen after the meeting of the Russia-NATO council in Brussels that took place on Wednesday.

The Secretary General pointed out that Ukraine decided to stick with the non-alliance policy and NATO respected that decision.

“We totally respect that. We perfectly cooperate with Ukraine in the framework of the Ukraine-NATO commission. We are ready to continue and expand this partnership. This is up to Ukrainians to make the decision whether they want to develop this partnership further”, - the press-service quotes Rasmussen.