The Ukrainian President Petro Porochenko submitted a bill to parliament that should allow Kiev to join NATO one day. It would insure Ukraine’s security and help it face up to Russian threats. Mr Porochenko’s decision should remove Ukraine’s neutral status, which is given to countries like Switzerland that refuse to join military alliances or actively implicate themselves in armed conflicts.
Ukraine became neutral in 2010 after pressure from Moscow.
Mr Porochenko made joining NATO one of his foreign policy priorities after becoming president of Ukraine in February. His predecessor, Victor Ianoukovich, who sympathized with Moscow, had to resign after pressure from the people.
The Ukrainian president and NATO accuse Russian president Vladimir Putin of giving military support to separatist forces in the Industrial East of Ukraine.
While Moscow has repeatedly denied these allegations, Mr Porochenko claims Russian “aggression” against his country has forced him to turn to the West and present his project to parliament.
“Ukraine’s neutral status has shown it was a totally inefficient way to insure the country’s security”, said Mr Porochenko in a n explicative note on his internet site.
(Source: Belga)
