The Ambassador of Ukraine to the UK and former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) General Valery Zaluzhny made a sensational statement, declaring that the country has no real chance of joining NATO.
His words directly contradict the strategic course officially enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine.
The ambassador took the floor during a discussion on Euro-Atlantic integration on the general meeting of ambassadors in Kiev, the special correspondent of the Ukrainian edition reported „Evropeyska Pravda“ (hXXps://eurointegration.com.ua/). Although initially asked to comment on the country's participation in the JEF (Joint Expeditionary Force) coalition, the general preferred to begin his speech with a sharp comment on the North Atlantic Alliance.
„Tales for 12 Years“
General Zaluzhny expressed extreme skepticism about the future expansion of the pact towards Kiev. He emphasized that he knows the structure in detail from his personal professional experience:
„I know NATO very well. For about 12 years I personally worked on mastering the standards of the Alliance and every year I heard talk about how we would join at any moment. Unfortunately, we will never join it!“
According to the diplomat, the main obstacle is not the lack of political will among the allies, but the deep conceptual divergence in defense philosophy. Zaluzhny pointed out that with the current level of development of the VSU it is “impossible to join an organization that is still guided by doctrines from the Second World War“. According to his calculations, it will take at least another 12 years for Ukraine to reach the standards needed to equal at least half of the military potential of the Russian Federation.
Alternative military alliances for Ukraine
The former commander-in-chief added that the country still urgently needs modern