Ukraine will never become a NATO member?

During a Monday discussion on Euro-Atlantic integration at a meeting of ambassadors in Kyiv, Zaluzhnyi presented his views on Ukraine’s future in NATO. “I know NATO very well. For approximately 12 years, I personally worked to ensure that we adopted NATO standards, and every year I listened to fairy tales that we were just about to join NATO. Unfortunately, we will never join!”

In his opinion, the Alliance is still driven by World War II doctrines, which makes it impossible for Ukraine to join given its current military capabilities. He added, however, that “Ukraine needs technologies that NATO countries currently have,” including, among others, anti-ballistic missile defence and space capabilities.

Other alliances could prove to be more effective for Kyiv. Zaluzhnyi argued that “Ukraine will align itself with blocs and alliances that are likely to emerge. Most probably, this will be a European military security bloc.” Ukraine is also striving to become a member of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), a UK-led Northern European multi-national military partnership designed for rapid response and expeditionary operations. Currently, Ukraine maintains an enhanced partnership with the JEF. In Zaluzhnyi’s opinion, Ukrainian membership in the bloc would be a sufficient security mechanism. He added, however, that “the JEF has had command-and-control structures in place since 2015. It’s true that they are still weak; they are not yet at the level we need,” expressing regret that Ukraine is not working more actively towards joining it.

According to the Ukrainska Pravda portal, the JEF does not currently entail collective defence mechanisms or mutual defence obligations among its members.