The prime minister of Ukraine says he would like to see specifics from NATO about the next steps in his country’s membership bid before the heads of state and government for member countries gather for a summit in July.
“We also would like to have very concrete schedules and our homework and a date when we will have the possibility to be a member of NATO, so we will need this promise from NATO,” Denys Shmyhal told CTV’s Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an exclusive interview airing Sunday.
The prime minister also said he understands Ukraine cannot benefit from Article 5 of NATO —which outlines the principle of collective defence and that an attack on one member is considered an attack on all members — while it is not a member of the alliance, but that he’d like to see “guarantees of security” from the group while the war is ongoing.
Shmyhal’s interview with Kapelos took place during the prime minister’s first visit to Canada since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine more than a year ago.
When asked, Shmyhal would not say whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had expressly told him Canada would support a fast-tracked NATO accession for Ukraine.
“(Trudeau and I) discussed the issue of NATO,” he said. “Now we are preparing, and Canada and the prime minister and government of Canada are preparing some steps to support Ukraine on our NATO aspirations.”
“We hope that during the (NATO) summit in Vilnius, (Lithuania) we will have very concrete steps and promises from NATO about our mutual future,” he added.
The prime minister touched on a wide range of issues with Kapelos in their one-on-one interview, including the effectiveness of Ukraine’s air defence system, after a massive leak of American intelligence documents alleged Ukraine’s system was vulnerable.
They also discussed the ongoing need for military aid, as Ukraine prepares for a Russian spring offensive. Ukraine has long been calling for allied countries to donate F-16 fighter jets.
Shmyhal said he understands it will take time to train Ukrainian pilots on the fighter jets, but that his country needs to be prepared for what is expected to be a significant push from Russia in the coming months.
“We are very motivated to liberate our land,” Shmyhal said. “Our army’s motivated, our society’s motivated. We are tired because of this work but we are not exhausted. We are not fatigued.”
Trudeau announced during Shmyhal’s visit a new suite of supports for Ukraine, including 21,000 assault rifles, 38 machine guns, and more than two million rounds of ammunition.
Canada's financial support for Ukraine now totals more than $8 billion.
Shmyhal said his country is also asking for other measures, beyond military supports, including further sanctions on Russian individuals and its nuclear industry, and for an international tribunal to confiscate frozen Russian assets to help pay for Ukraine’s recovery.
Russia, and no other country, should pay for Ukraine’s recovery, he said.
