Besides longer-term security commitments, the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday won fresh pledges of weapons and ammunition from the West to fight Russia's invasion at the much awaited NATO summit.
A joint declaration issued by the G7 promised agreements to help Ukraine bolster its military over the long term.
Zelenskyy described the initiative as a bridge toward eventual NATO membership and a deterrent against Russia. However, he also expressed disappointment over the lack of a clear path for Ukraine to join NATO.
"The Ukrainian delegation is bringing home a significant security victory for the Ukraine, for our country, for our people, for our children," he said while flanked by U.S. President Joe Biden and other leaders from the Group of Seven most powerful democratic nations.
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Zelenskyy also thanked President Biden, saying that “you spend this money for our lives," and said shipments of controversial cluster munitions would help Ukraine's fight against Russia.
Biden promises unwavering support
"We will not waver," Biden vowed after the summit in Lithuania ended.
"I mean that. Our commitment to Ukraine will not weaken. We will stand for freedom today, tomorrow and for as long as it takes."
Biden and Zelenskyy also met privately along with their advisers.
Biden later added President Zelenskyy now understands that whether his country is formally in NATO is "not relevant as long as he has commitments" such as security guarantees.
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"So he's not concerned about that now."
However, Biden also had explicitly mentioned during the summit he doesn't think Ukraine is ready to join NATO. There are concerns that the country's democracy is unstable and its corruption remains too deeply rooted.
Alliance deepens tie with Ukraine
The NATO summit ended on a partially postive note for Ukraine as of on the final day, the alliance launched a new forum with a promise to strengthen ties with Ukraine: the NATO-Ukraine Council.
The council is expected to serve as a permanent body where the alliance's 31 members and Ukraine can hold consultations and call for meetings in emergency situations.
“Today we meet as equals,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said at a news conference with Zelenskyy.
"I look forward to the day we meet as allies.”
The ambiguity in the matter of granting Ukraine membership reflects the challenges of reaching consensus among the alliance's current members while the war continues.
“The results of the summit are good, but if there were an invitation, that would be ideal," Zelenskyy said, through a translator. He added that joining NATO would be “a serious motivating factor for Ukrainian society” as it resists Russia.
“NATO needs us just as we need NATO," he said alongside Stoltenberg.
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“We have to stay outside of this war but be able to support Ukraine. We managed that very delicate balancing act for the last 17 months. It's to the benefit of everyone that we maintain that balancing act,” Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said.
Russia's reaction
Moscow reacted harshly to the G7 plan.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said the summit cemented Ukraine's “role as the main expendable” in the “hybrid war” that it falsely claimed was “unleashed by NATO against Russia.”
“Having embarked on an escalation course, they issued a new batch of promises to supply the Kyiv regime with more and more modern and long-range weapons in order to extend the conflict of attrition for as long as possible,” the ministry said in a statement.
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Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that “by providing security guarantees to Ukraine, they're infringing on Russia's security.”
