NATO allies will present a plan for a “bridge to membership” for Ukraine and announce measures to strengthen Kiev’s air defenses at their summit in Washington next week, a senior US official said on Friday.
“Allies will reaffirm that Ukraine’s future is in NATO, and will make important new announcements about how we are increasing NATO’s military, political and financial support to Ukraine. This is part of Ukraine’s bridge to NATO,” the official told reporters.
US President Joe Biden, who is fighting to remain a viable candidate for re-election after a difficult debate with Republican Donald Trump, will host the leaders of NATO’s 32 members in Washington from Tuesday.
Biden is expected to hold a rare solo press conference during the summit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who unsuccessfully lobbied for a political invitation to join NATO at last summer’s NATO summit in Vilnius, has said this year’s summit should resolve the issue of inviting Kiev to join.
The senior US official described the “bridge to membership” plan as quite extensive, including coordination of training, logistics and force development.
“This is a very serious attempt to put Ukraine in a position where it is ready from day one to assume its roles and responsibilities within the alliance,” the official said.
Zelenskyy is expected to attend the summit as Ukraine tries to stop Russian advances in the Kharkiv area.
The senior US official also said the United States and some NATO allies will announce new steps “to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense and military capabilities so that Ukraine can continue to defend itself today.”
