In a fiery Vilnius speech following the Zelensky Nato meeting, Biden declares that his support for Ukraine “will not waver.”
President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that the G7 countries’ unified proclamation of support for Ukraine will “make it clear” that the world’s greatest democracies’ support for Kyiv “will last long into the future.”
Mr. Biden stated at the Nato summit in Vilnius following the maiden meeting of the Nato-Ukraine council that western nations are making long-term commitments to Ukrainian security assistance while Ukraine continues the process leading to full membership in the soon-to-be 31-member alliance.
President Volodymyr Zelensky called the Nato meeting a “meaningful success for Ukraine,” adding that he is bringing new security opportunities home.
Following the conference, Mr. Biden delivered a heated landmark address at Vilnius University, promising a gathering of 10,000 that the United republics and its allies will not waver in their support for Ukraine while saluting Lithuania and the other Baltic republics for their own historical struggles for freedom.
“Defending liberty is not a job for a day or a year.” It is our lifetime’s calling. Throughout history. We are prepared for the battle ahead. I assure you that our togetherness will not waver.”
What was the outcome of the Nato summit?
President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts closed off a two-day summit in Kiev on Wednesday with vows of long-term support but no offer of safety under the alliance’s security umbrella.
The conference in Lithuania, a country on NATO’s eastern flank that borders Russia, produced mixed results. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskky expressed gratitude for the pledges of additional guns and ammunition, but expressed disappointment that his country had no timetable for joining the world’s largest security alliance.
Following an evening of pre-summit drama, Sweden made a significant step toward becoming NATO’s 32nd member country when Turkey indicated that it would offer its consent but not before October.
The allies also made significant revisions to their defense plans in the event of a Russian or terrorist attack. They agreed to increase defense spending as well, but provided no timetable for attaining the targets.
What is preventing Ukraine from joining NATO?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy may have received backing and ambiguous pledges from NATO leaders this week in Vilnius, but he will return home without a concrete commitment that his country will join the organization any time soon.
Instead, the alliance leaders stated that they were lowering impediments to Ukraine’s membership so that it might join sooner once the war with Russia ended.
For many, that reasoning provides an excuse for Russia’s president to prolong the war, which was reportedly initiated to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO.
However, if Ukraine joins NATO in the midst of the conflict, Russia will be at odds with the entire NATO alliance.
At the heart of this quandary is Article 5, NATO’s shared defense guarantee, which states that an assault on one member is considered an attack on all.