By BRUSSELS. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The largest political group of the European Parliament, the European People’s Party group, expects that the upcoming NATO summits in Vilnius and Washington will open the way for Ukraine to join NATO, and that the accession process will begin after the end of the war and will be completed as soon as possible.
This is stated in the Declaration on Ukraine’s membership in NATO, which was adopted at the plenary meeting of the European People’s Party (EPP) group of the European Parliament on Tuesday, the press service of the group reports. “Ukraine’s NATO membership will not only strengthen the Alliance, but will also be a further step towards sustainable peace in Europe”, the EPP Group Declaration says.
Manfred Weber MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group is convinced that after the war it is impossible to leave Ukraine “outside Europe’s security architecture after the war.” “At the NATO Summits in Vilnius in July and in Washington next year, we must correct the mistakes of the past and pave the way to a membership perspective for Ukraine as soon as the war is over”, he said.
Rasa Juknevičienė MEP, EPP Group Vice-Chair, responsible for Foreign Affairs is also sure that a strong Euro-Atlantic link with Ukraine’s NATO membership is essential for the European security architecture.”
“Ukraine already has a strong, battle-tested army. I believe that Ukraine’s membership will strengthen the security of every European”, she added.
