Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on 26 February that a just and lasting peace in Ukraine can only be achieved if Kyiv receives security guarantees within the NATO framework, the European Press Agency reported.
This statement follows others, in particular, the US president’s claims that Ukraine should “forget about NATO” as part of any future peace agreement to end the war.
Ukraine formally submitted its application for NATO membership in 2022, following years of escalating tensions with Russia and a constitutional amendment prioritizing NATO membership in 2019.
“Efforts are needed to lay the foundations for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, which will only come about if Kyiv is given adequate security guarantees to make sure it does not happen again, and European nations that feel threatened can feel safe,” Meloni said after meeting Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Rome.
The Italian leader emphasized her belief that these security guarantees must be implemented within the Atlantic Alliance.
“I have always said, and believe, that these security guarantees must be implemented within the context of the Atlantic Alliance because I think that this is the best framework to guarantee a peace that is neither fragile nor temporary,” Meloni said.
She added that other solutions appear “more complex and frankly less effective.”
The comments come amid ongoing debate about Ukraine’s NATO membership prospects. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on 18 October 2024, that some allies oppose Ukraine’s NATO membership without offering alternatives.
On 16 January 2025, Zelenskyy named four countries that currently do not support Ukraine’s NATO membership: the United States, Hungary, Slovakia, and Germany.
Norwegian Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram said on 12 February in Brussels that Ukraine’s NATO membership is unrealistic at present.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov responded to the Pentagon chief’s statement regarding Ukraine’s NATO membership by asserting, “We want to be and will be a NATO country.”
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