This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s recent comments signaling Ukraine is unlikely to become a NATO member during its war to repel invading Russian troops is not a change in Washington’s position on the issue ahead of a key summit for the military alliance’s leaders, a senior State Department diplomat told RFE/RL.
In an interview conducted on May 28 and published by Time magazine, Biden appeared to suggest he no longer supported Ukraine’s NATO membership, a change from previously stated goals by Washington and the alliance itself.
But James O’Brien, U.S. assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, told RFE/RL on June 11 while on a visit to Armenia that “interpretations began to run away” from the meaning of Biden’s comments, and that Washington remains committed to Ukraine’s membership in the alliance.
“There’s no change in our position. I think what the president said, if I could just paraphrase, he said he doesn’t believe in Ukraine joining NATO now,” O’Brien said.
“Our position, really…is that Ukraine will be in the alliance when conditions allow.”
In the wide-ranging June 4 interview with Time, Biden said that “peace looks like making sure Russia never, never, never, never occupies Ukraine. That’s what peace looks like.”
But, he added, “It doesn’t mean NATO, [that] they are part of NATO.”
O’Brien further elaborated saying Biden was referring to the NATO summit in July when stating that he was “not prepared” to support Ukrainian membership.
“It will be clear that Ukraine needs to undertake some reforms, and it will take some time to adapt its military from what it had been before Russia’s further invasion, to what it will be needed to be part of NATO.
“And we’ll lay out [at the summit] both how NATO will assist Ukraine in getting ready. So we are talking about several steps,” he added.
NATO stated in the final declaration of last year’s summit in Vilnius that “Ukraine’s future is in NATO” and there are indications that the upcoming summit of the alliance in Washington next month would reinforce the message of support for Kyiv’s eventual membership.
In reaction to Biden’s interview, a NATO source who spoke on condition of anonymity told RFE/RL that “my understanding is that the American line has been and still is that Ukraine should be offered ‘a bridge to NATO membership.'”
O’Brien echoed those comments, with Ukraine remaining a NATO ally in the near future as it prepares for the longer term.
“We’re talking about NATO assisting with building Ukraine’s future force, so that it will know that it has a military able to deter and repel further Russian aggression, but also that NATO will assist with Ukraine’s reforms,” O’Brien said.
