Staff Writer
In a speech in Vilnius on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pressed for Ukraine to join NATO as the alliance’s leaders met for a crucial summit in the capital of Lithuania.
Alongside the president of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, Zelensky declared, “NATO will give Ukraine security, and Ukraine will make NATO stronger,” before raising the flag of the Ukrainian army from the crucial battleground of Bakhmut.
Bakhmut, a city in eastern Ukraine previously well-known for its salt mining and sparkling wine production, has been completely destroyed in the war’s longest and bloodiest fight.
According to Zelensky, “Bakhmut is one of the most significant battles in Europe for freedom, and that is how our children and grandchildren will remember it.”
Even though he previously stated that he does not anticipate Ukraine to join until the end of the war, Zelensky is prepared to press NATO members for a specific timeline for bringing his country into the alliance.
“Today I set off here with faith… in a NATO that does not hesitate, does not waste time,” stated Zelensky.
Zelensky stated, “I would like this faith to turn into confidence—confidence in the answers that we deserve.
Only bringing Ukraine inside the collective defense umbrella of the alliance, according to Kiev and NATO countries in eastern Europe, will prevent Moscow.
Key nations like the United States and Germany have been hesitant to go much further than a pledge made in 2008 that stated Ukraine would join at some point but did not specify when.
