"Bridge to NATO" to provide Ukraine with membership when there is political will – White House
The administration of the president of the United States explained what Ukraine’s allies in the Alliance mean when they talk about creating a "bridge to NATO for Ukraine."
As reported by Voice of America, Michael Carpenter, Director for European Affairs of the White House National Security Council, says that from the point of view of the perception of the threat, the allies are in "a fairly good position in relation to Ukraine", and "there are still some different opinions about what and when the membership might look like".
Carpenter stressed that the "bridge to NATO" is needed so that Ukraine can join the Alliance on the same day when there is political will.
He noted that some people do not like it, but he likes the metaphor of a bridge to NATO.
"Because this is exactly what we are trying to achieve (on the way to future membership)," Michael Carpenter said.
Carpenter pointed out that the document, published at the NATO summit in Washington, will provide Ukraine with an "institutional bridge to NATO membership" so that when Ukraine receives an invitation, it will be ready, capable and able to join the Alliance instantly.
The White House official also reminded Kyiv to carry out additional reforms and measures to achieve operational compatibility with NATO.
We are talking about training, the development of material and technical support, the development of defence institutions, support for mobilisation, training civilians to involve them in the army, the rotation of the military, providing benefits for veterans, medical support, and so on.
"This is not the case in Ukraine right now. And so we must help them, and NATO will do it," Michael Carpenter said.
The US State Department stated that they don't discuss the wording of the upcoming communiqué of the NATO summit in Washington, despite widespread press reports about disputes over how the clause on Ukraine's membership will be formulated.
Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, said that she hopes to consolidate the wording at the Washington Summit of NATO’s decision on the irreversibility of Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic course.