The US does not expect Ukraine to be invited to join NATO

Washington does not anticipate that NATO will officially invite Ukraine to the summit in July, according to media reports citing a US representative in the alliance.

Such an invitation was eagerly awaited by Kyiv at the Vilnius summit last year, also in July. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky even issued a public ultimatum to Western leaders, stating that if there was no official invitation, he would not attend Vilnius as it would be pointless. However, after some behind-the-scenes discussions, he did attend and, for the first time since the start of the war, was publicly rejected by allies. His threats had to be forgotten, which became a diplomatic defeat for Ukraine as a whole.

Now, the issue of Ukraine’s accession to NATO has become less relevant. Western leaders had previously stated that a country with unresolved territorial conflicts with neighbors cannot become a member of the alliance, as it automatically drags the alliance into war. Considering the unclear prospects for resolving the conflict, Kyiv’s prospects may remain unrealized for many years to come.