NATO Chief received Kyiv's application for membership in alliance: Ukrainian official

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has "officially" received Ukraine's application for becoming part of the military alliance under the accelerated procedure through diplomatic means, a Ukrainian official said. Ihor Zhovkva, Deputy Head of the Ukraine President's Office, informed that Ukraine's application is signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament, Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk. Ukrainska Pravda reported. Notably, Ukraine submitted an application for NATO membership after Russia announced the annexation of Moscow-occupied Ukrainian territories. 

Ihor Zhovkva underscored that the next stage in the NATO membership bid involves discussion at the level of the North Atlantic Council. According to him, the discussion will take place at the level of the ambassadors of NATO member states in Brussels. He underscored that the Ukrainian side sought membership in NATO under the "accelerated process" without the membership action plan. Zhovkva stressed that the membership action plan "has been one of mandatory elements" in NATO membership, as per the news report. According to him, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the diplomatic service were carrying out negotiations with the NATO nations regarding the application of Ukraine to acquire membership in the military alliance.

"As of today, the NATO Secretary General has officially received this application by the Note from Ukraine. The next stage is going to be its discussion at the level of the North Atlantic Council; that is, at the level of Ambassadors of NATO countries in Brussels," Ukrainska Pravda quoted Ihor Zhovkva as saying.

Zelenskyy announces seeking NATO membership under 'accelerated procedure'

On 30 September, Zelenskyy announced that they are signing Ukraine's application for "accelerated accession" to NATO. In his remarks, the embattled President said, "De facto, we have already proven interoperability with the Alliance’s standards, they are real for Ukraine - real on the battlefield and in all aspects of our interaction." He said that Ukraine is applying for NATO membership under an "accelerated procedure." He made the announcement after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the annexation of four Moscow-occupied regions of Ukraine. 

Nine NATO members seek support for Ukraine

On October 2, the heads of nine European NATO members issued a joint statement supporting Ukraine's NATO bid. Notably, a country requires approval from all 30 members of the military alliance to become part of NATO. In the statement, the leaders of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania and Slovakia issued a statement saying: "We do not recognize and will never recognize Russian attempts to annex any Ukrainian territory. We firmly stand behind the 2008 Bucharest NATO Summit decision concerning Ukraine’s future membership."

The presidents of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania and Slovakia further stated that they support Ukraine in its defence against Russia and called on Moscow to withdraw from occupied parts of Ukraine. The leaders further said, "We support Ukraine in its defence against Russia's invasion, demand Russia to immediately withdraw from all the occupied territories and encourage all Allies to substantially increase their military aid to Ukraine. All those who commit crimes of aggression must be held accountable and brought to justice."