NATO will offer Ukraine a ‘bridge’ to membership, hoping that’s enough

The Biden administration and NATO officials came up with the idea as a way to give something solid to Ukraine at the summit even as they maintain the time is not right for the country to join. But Jake Sullivan, the US national security adviser, said that the summit would show that allies are taking “concrete steps” to bring Ukraine closer and to ensure it has a “bridge to eventual membership.” At the NATO summit last year, the alliance also refused to offer Ukraine a fixed timeline and clear path to membership or to allow negotiations on membership to begin. Calling the new mission “a key summit deliverable” and a further step “on Ukraine’s path to NATO membership,” he emphasized that “these efforts do not make NATO a party to the conflict, but they will enhance our support to Ukraine to uphold its right to self-defense.”

Author: Steven Erlanger

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