Ukraine has been invited to attend the NATO summit later in June, President Volodymyr Zelensky and the alliance said, after earlier warning it would be a “victory” for Russia if it were not there.
The heads of NATO states will gather in The Hague, Netherlands, from June 24-26, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and US President Donald Trump’s calls for alliance members to ramp up defence spending, set to dominate the agenda.
“We were invited to the NATO summit. I think this is important,” Zelensky said Monday after he held a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Vilnius.
Kyiv is seeking to shore up its support from Europe because of uncertainties over vital military aid under Trump.
A NATO official confirmed to AFP that “that Ukraine will be with us in The Hague”.
“We will publish the NATO Summit agenda in due course,” the official said.
Last week Zelensky had said that “if Ukraine is not present at the NATO summit, it will be a victory for Putin, but not over Ukraine, but over NATO.”
Zelensky wants NATO to offer security guarantees to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire or peace deal with Russia – something Moscow has called “unacceptable”.
