BUCHAREST (AP) — NATO returns to the scene of one of its most controversial decisions Tuesday, intending to repeat its promise that Ukraine — now in the 10th month of a war with Russia — will one day join the alliance. largest military in the world
NATO foreign ministers will meet for two days at the Parliament Palace in the Romanian capital, Bucharest. It was there in April 2008 that US President George W. Bush persuaded his allies to open the NATO door to Ukraine and Georgia, despite vehement Russian objections.
“NATO welcomes the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of Ukraine and Georgia for NATO membership. We agreed today that these countries will become members of NATO,” the leaders said in a statement. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was at the summit, described this as “a direct threat” to Russia’s security.
About four months later, Russian forces invaded Georgia.
Some experts describe the decision in Bucharest as a massive mistake that left Russia feeling hemmed in by a seemingly ever-expanding NATO. NATO counters that it does not pressure gang countries to join, and that some applied for membership to seek protection from Russia, as Finland and Sweden are now doing.
More than 14 years later, NATO will commit this week to long-term support for Ukraine as it fends off Russian air, ground and missile attacks, many of which have hit power grids and other civilian infrastructure, depriving millions of people. of people for electricity and heating. .
“NATO will continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. We will not back down,” the organization’s top civilian official, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, promised last week.
North Macedonia and Montenegro have joined the US-led organization in recent years. With this, Stoltenberg said, “we have shown that the NATO door is open and that it is NATO allies and aspiring countries who decide on their membership. This is also the message for Ukraine.”
This meeting in Bucharest is likely to see NATO make new promises of non-lethal support to Ukraine: fuel, electricity generators, medical supplies, winter gear and drone jamming devices.
Individual allies are also likely to announce new supplies of military equipment for Ukraine, primarily the air defense systems that Kyiv so desperately seeks to protect its skies. NATO, as an organization, will not offer such supplies, lest it be drawn into a broader war with Russia, which possesses nuclear weapons.
But the ministers, together with their Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, will also look further afield.
“In the long term, we will help Ukraine transition Soviet-era equipment to modern NATO standards, doctrine and training,” Stoltenberg said. This will not only improve the Ukrainian armed forces and help them integrate better, but also fulfill some of the conditions for membership.
That being said, Ukraine will not be joining NATO any time soon. With the Crimean peninsula annexed and Russian troops and pro-Moscow separatists controlling parts of the south and east, it is unclear what Ukraine’s borders would look like.
Many of the 30 allies believe that the focus now should be solely on defeating Russia.
But even as economic pressure (high electricity and gas prices, plus inflation, all exacerbated by the war) mounts on many allies, Stoltenberg would not pressure Ukraine into peace talks, and indeed the European and NATO diplomats say Putin seems unwilling. to come to the table.
“Most wars end with negotiations,” he said. “But what happens at the negotiating table depends on what happens on the battlefield. Therefore, the best way to increase the chances of a peaceful solution is to support Ukraine.”
The foreign ministers of Bosnia, Georgia and Moldova, three partners NATO says are under increasing Russian pressure, will also be in Bucharest. Stoltenberg said that NATO “will take additional steps to help them protect their independence and strengthen their ability to defend themselves.
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Cook reported from Brussels.
