Lithuania is set to propose other NATO Allies providing a Membership Action Plan to Ukraine, which would allow the country to ultimately join the Alliance, says Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis.
"We should soon turn to our colleagues with a letter, urging them to once again consider this option of providing an MAP to Ukraine," Landsbergis told a press conference in Vilnius, according to Delfi. [...] "I'm convinced, NATO could have reiterated its offer on providing a Membership Action Plan to Ukraine, and we have just started coordinating the issue with our colleagues from Baltic States."
Read alsoZelensky urges NATO to expand military presence in Black Sea regionThis, Landbergis added, would send "a strong signal to Russia that Ukraine is choosing a Transatlantic path, and that this saw feedback from among NATO Allies."
In an interview with LRT TV on Tuesday, Landsbergis also said that, had Ukraine been a NATO member – which is an express goal of the government in Kyiv – Russia would not have been able to annex Crimea and start a war in Eastern Ukraine.
"We are all probably feeling a little responsible today for the actions we didn't take in the past," he said, adding that NATO Allies should help Ukraine implement reforms on the path to membership in the military bloc.
Background
On February 24, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that after receiving a status of an Enhanced Opportunities Partner, Ukraine should also get a NATO Membership Action Plan.
On March 5, Olha Stefanyshyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro Atlantic integration, said at least 14 of 30 NATO Allies are ready to bring to a practical plain the "open door" policy for Ukraine.
On April 6, during a phone call with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, President Zelensky said Ukraine's movement toward NATO membership is the only way to put an end to the war in Donbas.
The White House said the decision on Ukraine's membership depends on the will of all Allies.
At the same time, the Kremlin "deeply doubts" that Ukraine's membership in NATO would facilitate the end of hostilities.
