The News
NATO offered Ukraine an “irreversible” path to membership in a joint communique released on Wednesday, in the alliance’s most definitive move yet in support of Ukraine as it continues to fight Russia’s invasion.
The alliance stated that Ukraine has an “irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership,” saying that Ukraine will be allowed into the organization “when Allies agree and conditions are met.”
The language on Ukraine was thrashed out by US and Ukrainian officials while Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, visited Washington last week, one European official told Semafor.
The US initially opposed the “irreversible” language, preferring instead to commit to a “bridge to membership,” but it appears to have accepted including the word — which Zelenskyy preferred — on the condition that Ukraine makes further anti-corruption reforms, according to USA Today.