President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko considers humiliating to follow the opinion of other countries when it comes to Ukraine’s integration with NATO.
According to an UNIAN correspondent, he claimed this, speaking at the All-Ukrainian Intelligentsia Forum today.
According to the President, none of the countries, which gained their independence over the last 20 years, did not choose any other model of security but collective one.
Victor Yushchenko stressed that Ukraine’s joining NATO MAP is just a “preface to the fundamental answer, which will be given by the nation in several years”.
“A little child is always afraid of darkness, because he thinks there is a threat. A man is always afraid of what he is not well-informed about. Let us give opportunity to this power to carry out a dialog with the society and to give the information and knowledge that would lead us in a year or two to the answer – whether we want this model of security or not”, Victor Yushchenko said.
The President also called on not to listen to the information from other countries’ capitals. “In my opinion, it is humiliating for the Ukrainian nation. We may give our own answer to this absolutely sovereign question”, he emphasized.
The President of Ukraine also added that the Ukraine’s integration with NATO does not threaten other countries. He confirmed readiness of Ukraine to provide any guarantees of this issue.
“Somebody spreads rumors that there will be a NATO military base in Sevastopol – there will be no such base. Read the Ukrainian Constitution more attentively, it sets out that no military bases of other countries or blocks will ever be allowed at the territory of Ukraine”, Victor Yushchenko said.
Speaking about Russia, Victor Yushchenko asked to turn attention to which namely countries are the best friends of Russia in Europe, as of today. “Germans, Frenchmen, Spaniards, Italians. But all of them are NATO countries”, the President said.
He also recalled the words of Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit to Bulgaria, when he claimed that Russia respects the sovereign right of the Bulgarian nation to join NATO and the European Union.
“In fact, when we think about our own national interests, we have an answer to any challenges”, Victor Yushchenko said.
