BERLIN, April 18. / TASS /: Ukraine’s Ambassador to Germany Andrey Melnyk believes that it’s up to Berlin to help Kiev become part of NATO, the diplomat stated on Sunday in an interview with the Welt am Sontag newspaper.
According to the Ukrainian diplomat, Germany has to "take a leading role so that Ukraine becomes a NATO member." "And as soon as possible, without any reservations," he stressed. The ambassador attributed this to the fact that Germany "bore special historical responsibility for Nazi crimes against the Ukrainian people."
Deputy Chairman of the Christian Democratic Union’s parliamentary faction Johann Wadephul opposed the idea, noting that "de-escalation was currently required. Therefore, it is clear that Ukraine's accession to NATO is obviously not on the agenda," he said.
At the Bucharest summit in April 2008, the North Atlantic Alliance adopted a political statement that "Ukraine and Georgia would eventually become NATO members", however, it refused to provide both countries with Action Plans, considered as the first step in the legal procedure for the accession. In February 2019, Ukraine’s parliament approved amendments to the constitution, enshrining Ukraine's aspirations to become a NATO member with the wording of "the irreversibility of following the Euro-Atlantic course."
The country’s new military doctrine of 2015 stipulated ensuring the full compatibility of the Ukrainian Armed Forces with the NATO armies by 2020. Earlier, Ukraine was granted the status of a NATO partner "with enhanced opportunities." On Friday, in an interview with the Figaro newspaper, Ukraine’s President Vladimir Zelensky stated that "the moment to invite Ukraine to NATO and the EU had come".
