Speaker of the Seimas: ‘Presidents of five Parliaments call on the Allies to commit to Ukraine’s membership of NATO’

Press release, 10 July 2023 (News ● Photos ● Broadcasts and videos)

Photo by Olga Posaškova, Office of the Seimas

Today, Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, Speaker of the Seimas, took part in a working breakfast with Presidents of the Parliaments of the Baltic States, Poland and Ukraine held in Riga, Latvia. Taking into account the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius and welcoming the first inaugural meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council to be held in the framework of the Summit, the parliamentary Presidents adopted a joint statement.

‘With this Statement, we called on our Allies to undertake the commitment that Ukraine would become a member of NATO and to establish a path for Ukraine to join NATO,’ said Ms Čmilytė-Nielsen.

As outlined in the Joint Statement, it is now important to focus the cooperation within the Alliance and between NATO and EU on achieving truly tangible results, to develop security commitments for Ukraine, and to continue taking coordinated measures to meet Ukraine’s urgent needs for military and defence equipment.

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Photo by Olga Posaškova, Office of the Seimas

The Presidents of five Parliaments call on the Allies to assist Ukraine in strengthening its defence capabilities and potential, until Ukraine fully restores its territorial integrity and sovereignty within the internationally recognized borders of 1991.

Moreover, the Allies are invited to establish a crisis consultation mechanism with Ukraine to conduct consultations in the event of a threat to the territorial integrity, political independence or security of Ukraine or any of the NATO member states.

Last but not least, the Joint Statement calls for the provision of NATO’s practical assistance to Ukraine by further strengthening the Comprehensive Assistance Package, aimed at achieving full interoperability of Ukraine with the Alliance and a comprehensive transition to NATO standards.

For the text of the Joint Statement in English, please click here.

Ilona Petrovė, Spokesperson for Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, Speaker of the Seimas, tel. +370 5 239 6030, mob. + 370 698 42071, e-mail: [email protected], www.lrs.lt