Maronkova: Ukraine should carry out appropriate reforms on path towards NATO

"NATO is committed to an open door policy, respects and recognizes Ukraine's desire to become a member of the Alliance, but at the same time encourages appropriate reforms," ​​ Barbora Maronkova, Director of NATO Information and Documentation Centre in Ukraine, said during the webinar "Ukraine - NATO. Regional Dimension" for media representatives of southern and eastern Ukraine, ARMIYA'UA reports.

According to Maronkova, the open door policy means that "any country in the Euro-Atlantic area can join NATO if this country adheres to the standards and obligations of membership, contributes to the security of the Alliance, and shares NATO's values ​​- democracy, reform, rule of law."

The diplomat stressed that the decision to invite a country to join the Alliance "is made on the basis of consensus" and that "no third country can interfere in this process."

She reminded that the Alliance had upheld a firm position since 2008 that Ukraine and Georgia would become NATO members.

Barbora Maronkova called granting Ukraine the Enhanced Opportunities Partner status on June 12 this year a constructive and effective step in this direction.

"This status is part of a NATO initiative for compatibility with partners. It supports and deepens cooperation between Allies and Partners that make a significant contribution to NATO-led operations and missions. And today, six countries are already participants in this program - Finland, Australia, Georgia, Sweden, Jordan, and Ukraine," Maronkova said.

"However, Ukraine's EOP status is not a signal of any decision on NATO membership. The Allies have taken note of Ukraine's desire to continue Euro-Atlantic integration and are ready to provide political and practical support. Allies continue to encourage and support Ukraine, inter alia, on the path towards reform," the NATO representative said.

Maronkova mentioned the need for public control over the processes in the state, democratic oversight, and fight against corruption among important things for Ukraine.

"There is no short cut to NATO membership," she added.

Speaking about the necessary steps in Ukraine's defense and security reforms for this year, the NATO representative described as positive "the beginning of a new cycle of defense and security planning in Ukraine."

Covid-19 has slowed down the process a bit, she said, "but work with the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff goes on."

According to the NATO representative, Ukraine should adopt a "new national security strategy, military security strategy, defense strategy, and complete a series of reviews in the security and defense sector."

In her opinion, this will form "fundamental strategic priorities of Ukraine" for the coming years.

Answering journalists' questions about NATO's attitude to the current reduction in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Maronkova noted that the Armed Forces have come a long way since 2014, technical and tactical capabilities have increased significantly, but Ukraine faces many challenges.

"I have already talked about the strategic documents that need to be revised and new military doctrines and a military strategic bulletin created. If we need to make Ukraine safer, we should continue to focus on comprehensive structural institutional approaches. We need to plan the reforms so that they are consistent, so that the reforms do not change with the appointment of the new leadership of the Ministry of Defense or the General Staff," she said.

On June 12, Ukraine was granted NATO EOP status implying deeper and more individual engagement with forces of the Alliance.

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