NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg held a press conference with the President of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky, before the NATO-Ukraine Commission Heads of State and Government Meeting in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.
Secretary General Stoltenberg stated that they will continue to support Ukraine as long as it is needed, and reminded that NATO members agreed on a package consisting of 3 elements for Ukraine’s NATO membership.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, stated that some NATO member countries were afraid of the inclusion of Ukraine in NATO while the Russia-Ukraine war was going on because they were afraid that a world war would break out. In response to this, Zelensky said, “Ukraine knows that it cannot be a member of NATO as long as there is war. Ukraine has come very close to NATO, but we also understand that this is impossible during the war.” However, he also noted that NATO’s invitation to Ukraine would carry an important signal. Zelensky also stated that he will ask G7 member states to guarantee security to Ukraine today.