Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday blasted as “absurd” the absence of a timetable for his country’s membership in NATO, injecting harsh criticism into a gathering of the alliance’s leaders that was intended to showcase solidarity in the face of Russian aggression. The broadside from Zelenskyy could renew tensions at the summit shortly after it saw a burst of goodwill after Turkey agreed to advance Sweden’s bid to join NATO. Allies hope to resolve the seesawing negotiations and leave Vilnius with a clear path forward for the alliance and its support for Ukraine. Officials have drafted a proposal, which has not been publicly released, on Ukraine’s potential membership. U.S. President Joe Biden expressed support during a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, but Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter that he was not satisfied. “We value our allies,” he said but added that “Ukraine also deserves respect.” “It’s unprecedented and absurd when time frame is not set neither for the invitation nor for Ukraine’s membership,” Zelenskyy said. He finished with, “Uncertainty is weakness. And I will openly discuss this at the summit.” Zelenskyy is expected to meet with Biden and other NATO leaders on Wednesday. There have been sharp divisions within the alliance over Ukraine’s desire to join NATO, which was promised back in 2008 even though few steps were taken toward that goal. Stoltenberg wrote in Foreign Affairs on Monday that the alliance would “upgrade our political ties” by forming a NATO-Ukraine Council, which would be “a platform for decisions and crisis consultation.” In addition, he said Tuesday that NATO would forgo requiring “membership action plan” for Ukraine, removing another hurdle. But that did not seem to alleviate Zelenskyy’s concerns. In addition, the Baltic states — including Lithuania, which is hosting the summit — have pushed for a strong show of support and a clear pathway toward membership for Ukraine. However, the United States and Germany were urging caution. Biden said last week that Ukraine wasn’t ready to join. Members of NATO, he told CNN, need to “meet all the qualifications, from democratization to a whole range of other issues,” a nod toward longstanding concerns about governance and corruption in Kyiv. In addition, some fear that bringing Ukraine into NATO would serve more as a provocation to Russia than as a deterrence against aggression. Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, said allies were debating the “precise nature” of Ukraine’s pathway to membership. However, he promised that the summit would demonstrate how Russian President Vladimir Putin’s hopes for fractures within NATO will be unfulfilled. “He has been disappointed at every turn,” Sullivan said. “Vilnius will very much disappoint him.” The dispute over Ukraine stands in contrast to a hard-fought agreement to advance Sweden’s membership. The deal was reached after days of intensive meetings, and it’s poised to expand the alliance’s strength in Northern Europe. “Rumors of the death of NATO’s unity were greatly exaggerated,” Sullivan told reporters triumphantly on Tuesday. According to a joint statement issued when the deal was announced, Erdogan will ask Turkey’s parliament to approve Sweden joining NATO. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, another holdout, is expected to take a similar step. Hungary’s foreign minister said Tuesday that his country’s ratification of Sweden’s NATO membership was now just a “technical matter.” Erdogan has not yet commented publicly. The outcome […]

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