President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that NATO countries should take a step towards bringing Ukraine’s membership of the Alliance closer at the summit in Washington in July 2024.

"We would like to see a real step from NATO countries that brings Ukraine closer to the Alliance. To avoid stagnation. To make it a successful and productive summit [of NATO in Washington], and for NATO countries to show that they are not afraid of Russia," noted Zelenskyy in an interview with journalists in Riga, as the Ukrainian President's Office reports.

The Ukrainian president said that the NATO-Ukraine Council’s work results demonstrate the effectiveness of this tool for interaction, which makes it possible to improve communication between partner countries in solving important issues for Kyiv.

"We used this tool, and I saw how quickly partners can be organised, meetings can take place at the level of defence ministers, foreign ministers, and so on," stated Zelenskyy. He noted that work has begun on security guarantees following the Joint Declaration of the G7 and Ukraine adopted at the NATO summit in Vilnius.

"We have started work on security guarantees. It's not easy, but I think that soon we will be able to demonstrate to the public – and not only the Ukrainian public – the first such draft. Not everything, because there are closed provisions, non-public ones, but we will be able to show general things. I think the assessment will be positive," indicated Zelenskyy. 

He added that security guarantees include not only the provision of weapons but also financial, IT, and cyber support, marking a step on Ukraine's path to NATO.

Earlier, Zelenskyy said he expected to see defence and political decisions from the NATO Washington Summit.

At the Vilnius summit in July, the Alliance, due to the resistance of the US and German leaders, not only refused to extend an invitation to Ukraine for membership but also set a new condition: to receive an invitation, Ukraine must fulfil the requirements of the Annual National Programme (ANP).

Late in November, at a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, Ukraine presented an adapted Annual National Programme for further reforms in line with the Alliance's requirements. It is on this basis that NATO members will assess Kyiv's progress towards accession.

Read more: Road to NATO without Hungary’s Veto: Ukraine's Reform Plan Agreed with Alliance