Ukraine can't join Nato due to war, says Polish president

WARSAW - Polish President Andrzej Duda said Wednesday there were no prospects for the admission of Ukraine to Nato at the time of the Nato Summit in Lithuania, reported Sputnik.

When asked about the summit, held in Lithuania's Vilnius from July 11 to 12, Duda said he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and talked to him about the prospect of Ukraine's accession to Nato.

"From the very beginning, we realised this was a very complex issue. In particular, it is complicated simply because there is a war going on, and we were aware that the acceptance of Ukraine as a full member of Nato is out of the question at the moment," the Polish Press Agency quoted the president as saying at the Krynica Forum 2023 in Poland.

Duda said Ukraine's admission to Nato would have meant the alliance's entry into a war with Russia due to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty on the principle of collective defence.

"Therefore, it was obvious that Nato countries would not agree to this," the president said, adding that the Vilnius Summit was "about opening the door to Nato for Ukraine".

As a result of the summit, Nato leaders agreed on a package of three elements to bring Ukraine closer to the alliance. The first element is the creation of an assistance programme for Ukraine that will facilitate its transition to Nato standards, training and doctrine. The second element is the establishment of a Nato-Ukraine Council, and the third is the cancellation of the membership action plan for Ukraine, which will allow Kyiv's accession process to be shortened from two steps to one. However, the bloc has not extended an official invitation to Kyiv. - BERNAMA-SPUTNIK