NATO leaders finalising ‘positive message' on Ukraine, says Stoltenberg

The final communiqué of the NATO summit will contain a "positive and strong message on Ukraine", possibly including a path to membership, the Alliance’s secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday.

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At the NATO Public Forum before the leaders’ meeting, Mr Stoltenberg was asked by Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Honcharenko whether Kyiv would be invited to join the Alliance.

Mr Stoltenberg replied that the final communiqué of the summit, the wording of which has not yet been finalised and will be ready "in a few hours", will contain "elements of what you are talking about".

"You will see the language in a few hours because we are finalising the communique," the NATO secretary general said.

"You said something about the elements that I believe will be in there, but it’s for the leaders to finally endorse and agree on the communique.

"What I can say is that I’m confident there will be a positive and strong message on Ukraine and a path forward on membership."

NATO is holding a summit in Lithuania on 11 and 12 July where leaders are expected to discuss Ukraine's membership.

Earlier, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on US leader Joe Biden to invite Ukraine to NATO now even if membership does not come until after the war.