Erdogan Says What Could Facilitate Ukraine's NATO Membership

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan believes that the end of military operations in Ukraine will ease the country’s path to NATO membership. He made this statement at Istanbul airport before heading to the NATO summit scheduled in Vilnius.

“A just end to the war will expedite Ukraine’s process of joining NATO in the shortest time possible,” said Erdogan.

According to Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, Ukraine’s membership in NATO would have very negative consequences for the security architecture of Europe.

It is noteworthy that the NATO summit will take place in Vilnius on July 11-12, with leaders from all member countries participating, including U.S. President Joe Biden.

Earlier, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan stated that Ukraine would not become a NATO member during the summit in Vilnius.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also mentioned on June 19 that the allies are not discussing an official invitation for Ukraine at the Vilnius summit but are instead consulting on what decisions would bring Kyiv closer to membership.

It should be reminded that the Turkish president had previously also stated that Ukraine deserves to become a NATO member.