Ukraine wants to join NATO, Russia warns against crossing the "red line"

　　Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said on the 17th that Russia is paying close attention to the movement of Ukraine seeking to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Ukraine’s refusal to join NATO is Russia’s “red line”.

　　The NATO summit expressed support for Ukraine to become a NATO member, but did not propose a timetable.

[Russia mentions the "red line" again]

　　Peskov said in an interview with Moscow Echo Radio on the 17th that Ukraine’s seeking to join NATO “of course aroused our attention”.

He confirmed that during the large-scale talks between the heads of Russia and the United States held the day before, the two sides did not mention the topic of Ukraine's seeking to join NATO.

"(But) I can't say exactly what the small-scale talks discussed."

　　Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joseph Biden met in Geneva, Switzerland on the 16th.

The meeting was divided into two parts. The first part was a small-scale meeting, attended by the presidents of the two countries, the Russian Foreign Minister and the U.S. Secretary of State; the second part was a large-scale meeting.

Before the meeting between the leaders of Russia and the US dollar, the outside world generally believed that the situation in Ukraine would be one of the issues.

　　Regarding the "red line" of NATO's eastward expansion, Putin previously told the "Russia 24" television station: "If Ukraine joins NATO, a missile launched from the Ukrainian Kharkov or Dnepropetrovsk region will only take 7 to 10 minutes. Arrived in central Russia. Is this a red line for us?"

　　Speaking of Ukraine’s quest to join NATO, Putin said at the time: “Someone has to think about this issue. Think about how we should react to this matter that is being raised and discussed.”

[NATO pledges to support]

　　NATO held a leadership meeting on the 14th at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.

The joint communiqué of the summit mentioned NATO's support for Ukraine to become a NATO member, but did not propose a timetable.

　　Ukraine has sought to join NATO for many years.

As the situation in eastern Ukraine heats up this year, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky called on NATO to advance the process of accepting Ukraine as soon as possible in early April, calling it the "only way" to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

He called on NATO this year to include Ukraine in the "NATO Member State Action Plan," that is, to treat Ukraine as a NATO candidate country.

　　NATO included Ukraine in the list of "applicant countries" in 2018.

The Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine passed a constitutional amendment in February 2019, incorporating Ukraine's NATO membership into the constitution as a basic national policy.

　　If Ukraine is included in the "NATO Member States Action Plan," after meeting a series of NATO political, economic and military requirements, Ukraine will need to wait for NATO's official invitation, and then it will need to be approved by each member country.

The entire process of joining NATO is very complicated and often takes several years.

[The U.S. does not give "good words"]

　　Russian Satellite News Agency quoted Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba as saying on the 15th that Ukraine has made enough reforms to join the "NATO Member State Action Plan."

　　Zelensky previously put pressure on the US, saying that he hoped that Biden would give a clear answer "yes or no" on whether Ukraine can be included in the "NATO Member State Action Plan."

　　Biden told reporters after the NATO summit on the 14th that whether Ukraine can join NATO depends on whether Ukraine meets the NATO standards. Ukraine still needs to solve the corruption problem; Ukraine’s accession is not the US side’s final decision. To persuade other NATO member states.

　　Ukraine has recently called on the U.S. government to promote Ukraine’s "accession to the treaty."

To appease Uzbekistan, the White House invited Zelensky to visit the United States in July.

The US Department of Defense announced on the 11th that it will provide Ukraine with US$150 million in security assistance to help Ukraine "maintain territorial integrity" and improve its coordination with NATO.

(Du Juan) (Xinhua News Agency Special Feature)