NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană participated in the Third Summit of the International Crimea Platform on Wednesday (23 August 2023). He outlined decisions taken by NATO leaders at the Vilnius Summit in July to move Ukraine closer to the Alliance than ever before.
"NATO's support to Ukraine remains unwavering," said Mr Geoană. At the Vilnius Summit, the new NATO-Ukraine Council met for the first time, bringing Ukraine and NATO Allies to the table as equals to hold crisis consultations, and jointly take decisions. Also in Vilnius, NATO agreed a new multi-year assistance package to make Ukrainian forces fully interoperable with NATO, and decided to remove the requirement for a Membership Action Plan.
The Deputy Secretary General stressed how important it is that "we continue providing military support to Ukraine," so that Ukraine makes further progress, liberates more territory and has a strong hand at the negotiating table. He welcomed that NATO Allies continue to make major new announcements of military support, citing the supply of F-16 fighter jets by the Netherlands and Denmark as the latest example. "It is for Ukraine to decide the terms of peace. NATO's task, and the task of all the friends of Ukraine, is to support you. And you can count on our continued support for as long as it takes," concluded the Deputy Secretary General.
