In a stunning admission to reporters on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken asserted that Ukraine will become a member of NATO. The claim was made during a statement at NATO headquarters alongside Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister.
- “Ukraine will become a member of NATO. Our purpose at the summit is to help build a bridge to that membership.”
- “We’ve done a lot of work on that over the last couple of days here in Brussels, a lot more work to be done between now and the summit, but we will see, I think, at the summit very strong support for Ukraine going forward and its relationship with NATO.“
- “The final point is this: The fight that Ukraine has on its hands is not only Ukraine’s fight; it’s everyone’s fight.“
Why it’s Important: Russian President Vladimir Putin has continually drawn the line at Ukrainian NATO membership. As early as 2022, Putin had warned of conflict escalation and even the risk of nuclear war, if Ukraine were to be added to a Western military alliance.
- “Do you understand it or not, that if Ukraine joins NATO and attempts to bring Crimea back by military means, the European countries will be automatically pulled into a war conflict with Russia?“
- “Of course the [military] potential of NATO and Russia are incomparable. We understand it.”
- “…Russia is one of the leading nuclear states, and by some modern components it even outperforms many. There will be no winners. And you will be pulled into this conflict against your will. You won’t even have time to blink your eye when you execute Article 5.”
Context: While the move to add Ukraine to NATO may seem prudent to stop a so-called “threat to global security,” on social media, the idea appeared widely unpopular. On X, formerly Twitter, dozens of users voiced concerns, calling it a “sick joke,” that would pull us into “World War 3.”
- The move to encompass Ukraine with Western military protections comes amid a streak of Russian victories in the ongoing special military operation, which included the conquest of Avdeevka, an important artillery site and staging location for Ukrainian counter-attacks.
