Washington/Kyiv – US President Joe Biden said that it was ‘premature’ to begin the process of discussions on the issue of providing Ukraine with NATO membership. He said that Ukraine is still not ready for NATO membership. Biden further noted that the NATO alliance would not consider admitting Ukraine as a member until the Russia-Ukraine conflict ends. Thus, it was obvious that the possibility of providing Ukraine special status and other guarantees by NATO in the NATO summit being held this week was over. At the same time, Turkish President Recep Erdogan aggressively demanded that if the proposal for Sweden’s NATO membership was to be approved, the European Union (EU) should clear the way for Turkey’s membership.

Moreover, the NATO meeting begins in Lithuania in Eastern Europe on Tuesday, 11th July. Issues of NATO membership of Ukraine and Sweden are said to be prominent on the agenda in this meeting to be held on 11 and 12 July. Some major countries, including the US and Germany, have explicitly opposed the issue of early membership of Ukraine. Though Ukraine’s membership issue seems to be over with the statement of US President Biden, NATO sources have indicated that NATO members may offer security guarantees to Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Sweden’s chances of gaining NATO membership have also been fading. The United States and NATO have taken the initiative for Sweden’s inclusion in NATO. Turkey and Hungary, which are opposed to Sweden’s membership, are constantly discussing the issue and trying to create pressure. Meanwhile, Turkey has threatened that Sweden will not be allowed to join NATO until their demands are met. The Turkish head of state highlighted this at the negotiating council held on Monday again.

Nevertheless, President Erdogan has cornered the US and Europe by directly putting forth the issue of Turkey’s membership in the EU. Erdogan has put forth his demand more aggressively, saying that Turkey has been on the threshold of getting membership in the European Union (EU) for several decades, and the majority of NATO members are part of the EU.

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