Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Friday that the country had submitted an application for “rapid accession” to NATO through a message on the Telegram social network.
“We have already reached NATO,” he began, referring to the Ukrainian head of state. “We are taking a decisive step after the signing of Ukraine’s application for rapid accession to NATO,” he concluded.
The entry request comes after Vladimir Putin signed the annexation treaties of the four occupied Ukrainian regions.
“We know that it is possible. This year, we saw Finland and Sweden start joining the Alliance without a Membership Action Plan,” she justified.
Zelensky said that Ukraine is already “de facto” on the way to becoming a member of the Atlantic Alliance and has demonstrated its compatibility with NATO military standards, both on the battlefield and in interaction with allies.
“There is mutual trust, we help and protect each other. This is the alliance,” she said.
Membership must be approved by the 30 members of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization).
The annexation of the four regions, which correspond to about 15 percent of Ukraine’s land territory, occurred after the holding of referendums not recognized by the international community, between September 23 and 27.
The referendums, considered a sham by the international community, were held amid the war in Ukraine, which Russia invaded on February 24 this year.
Russia had already annexed the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014, after a similar process.
Updated news At 16:25
Source: TSF
