The reason for this is quite simple, he argues: Article 5. An attack on one NATO member state would mean an attack on all NATO member states. “So you don’t know what borders you’re defending,” he says. «But this does not mean that in the meantime the NATO summit in Vilnius cannot work on the interim period. The war will have to end one day, just like Ukraine will one day become a member of NATO”.
“The war must end sooner or later, just like Ukraine will one day become a member of NATO”
According to De Hoop Scheffer, Zelenski and his associates will more than benefit if this process is accelerated. Especially since Ukraine already had to deal with a “cat in a mess” in 2008. “Then NATO told Ukraine that membership was possible, but in 2023 they are not members yet and are at war “, explains De Hoop Scheffer.
Gray area
And so Ukraine – together with Georgia – has long been in a gray area, which Russian President Vladimir Putin saw as the green light for an attempted annexation. In 2008 Putin attempted to annex Georgia, in 2014 he took Crimea and in 2022 he started the invasion which continues to this day. ‘So I hope there will be more clarity in Vilnius than in Bucharest in 2008. It’s almost time.’
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Clarity in the form of a Ukraine that will no longer need an intermediate stage to actually join NATO. Furthermore, De Hoop Scheffer would like NATO member states to make a firm commitment to allowing the Ukrainian armed forces to fight if necessary, “so that Mr. Putin or his successor never again takes it into his head to attack Ukraine”. he said. «Ukraine already has a modern and very good armed force, but as far as I am concerned Vilnius must be given guarantees – possibly through bilateral agreements – for long-term commitments. But NATO membership is not yet foreseen.’