Ukraine's defense minister proposes constitutional change to allow foreign military bases

As Ukraine pursues Euro-Atlantic integration, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov is advocating for an amendment to the Ukrainian Constitution that would permit hosting foreign military bases in the country, according to a column he authored for LIGA.net.

Reznikov believes that the provision of the Constitution prohibiting the establishment of foreign military bases is outdated.

"It is clear that, if necessary, a legal formula can be found so that the base is not called a base, but some kind of 'center of interaction and exchange of experience' or something. But why? We need to remove this restriction, which has lost its relevance, to destroy the ground for speculation," the defense chief said.

In addition, Reznikov proposed to supplement Article 17 (on the protection of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine) with the point that Ukraine independently chooses the mechanisms for ensuring its security, in particular by joining international treaties or organizations.

"This will more clearly reveal and normalize the idea of the European and Euro-Atlantic course laid down in paragraph 5 of the preamble," he explained.