Ukraine's invitation to NATO has not been part of communiqué 48 hours before summit - Ukraine's Foreign Minister 

He said this on the United News telethon. 

"We had very different arguments and the discussion lasted for months. I want to tell you that as of Sunday, that is, 48 hours before the start of the summit, the text of the communiqué was not meant to mentioned an invitation to Ukraine at all," Kuleba said.

The Ukrainian Foreign Minister added that the position had been "shifted" thanks to negotiations with partners, including the United States and Germany.

"In 48 hours, thanks to very intensive and pragmatic reasoned communication with our partners, primarily the United States and Germany, we managed to "shift" them, and they agreed that the word "invitation" could or should be in the text. But in the end, it appeared in the wording that we see there," the minister said.

NATO countries agree on final communiqué on Ukraine

NATO stated that it remembers the 2008 commitment that Ukraine would become a NATO member. The document also acknowledged that Ukraine's path to full Euro-Atlantic integration has now gone beyond the requirements of the Membership Action Plan.

NATO Allies stressed that Ukraine is becoming more operationally and politically integrated with the Alliance and has made significant progress on its reform agenda.

The communiqué added that NATO foreign ministers will regularly assess progress through the Annual National Programme. In addition, the document states that the Alliance will support Ukraine in implementing reforms on its path to future membership.

NATO summit and Ukraine's accession to the Alliance

The NATO summit took place in Vilnius on July 11-12. The meetings were attended by leaders and government officials from various countries. Lithuania hosted the summit for the first time at the LITEXPO congress center. Security was ensured by thousands of military personnel, and the airspace was protected by air defense systems.

Leaders from 31 NATO countries, including US President Joe Biden, participated in the meetings. Delegations from Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia, Ukraine, and Sweden were also invited. Over 2,400 members from 48 foreign delegations, including heads of state and government officials, were expected to attend. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was also present.

During the summit on July 11, a decision was made regarding Ukraine. The Membership Action Plan stage was canceled, and Ukraine will receive an invitation to join the Alliance once it fulfills the entry requirements and gains the agreement of all NATO allies.

President Zelenskyy expressed his dissatisfaction with the conditions attached to Ukraine's invitation, stating that it seemed like a lack of readiness to invite Ukraine to NATO.

The Alliance agreed on a final communiqué concerning Ukraine, reaffirming the commitment made in 2008 that Ukraine would become a NATO member. The document acknowledged that Ukraine's path to Euro-Atlantic integration has exceeded the requirements of the Membership Action Plan. The member countries recognized Ukraine's progress in operational and political integration with NATO, as well as its significant reform efforts. Progress will be regularly assessed through the Annual National Programme.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, responded to the summit's decision by emphasizing that NATO should not delay Ukraine's accession to the military-political bloc. He also noted that the specific conditions for joining and who should formulate them were not yet known.

President Zelenskyy commented on the summit's results, expressing that if Ukraine receives an invitation to join NATO, it would be an ideal outcome.

On July 12, the G7 countries reached a joint declaration specifying security guarantees for Ukraine. Countries willing to join the agreement will have the opportunity to do so.

Subsequently, President Zelenskyy, who initially criticized the summit's decision, acknowledged that any doubts and ambiguities regarding Ukraine's NATO membership were now removed. He stated that Russia would no longer have a barrier blocking NATO's door.

For more information about the NATO summit, you can follow the link.