London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jul 21, 2025

US opposes offering Ukraine a path to NATO membership at upcoming summit, says focus should be on defeating 'Russian aggression'

US opposes offering Ukraine a path to NATO membership at upcoming summit, says focus should be on defeating 'Russian aggression'

US diplomats believe that extending NATO membership to Ukraine now would be a boon to Russian propaganda, the Financial Times reported.
The United States does not support offering Ukraine a "road map" to NATO membership, believing it would be a distraction from immediate security needs and a boon to the Russian propaganda machine, the Financial Times reported Thursday, citing officials familiar with talks taking place ahead of the military alliance's July summit.

On Tuesday, NATO formally welcomed its newest member, Finland. Speaking at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's foreign minister, said his country was "aiming at reaching the same goal, becoming a full member of NATO."

Leaders from Poland and Estonia are among those who would like Ukraine to join the alliance sooner rather than later, according to officials who spoke with the Financial Times.

In 2008, NATO "welcomed" Ukraine's "aspirations for membership" but has not made progress on the issue since, in large part due to the active military conflict in the country since 2014.

Ultimately allowing Ukraine to join NATO remains US policy. But the Biden administration's stance is that now is not the time.

"In order for us to get to the question of when and how to get Ukraine into the alliance, we must, as the secretary-general has noted, 'ensure that Ukraine prevails as a sovereign, independent nation,'" a US official told the Financial Times.

The US is also concerned that raising the prospect of NATO membership, now, would aid the Kremlin narrative that it is engaged in a war against the alliance and potentially escalate the conflict, the outlet reported.

A spokesperson for the State Department told Insider that the US is focused right now "on doing what needs to be done to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression." It also remains committed, the spokesperson said, to allowing Ukraine to someday join NATO.

"There's no change in that, but we have to be in this moment focused intensely on the weeks and months ahead, particularly as Ukraine prepares for a counteroffensive, again, to try to retake more of its territory, as well as work that needs to be done to continue to bring Ukraine up to NATO standards and NATO interoperability," the spokesperson said.

A White House spokesperson, speaking to Insider, declined to confirm the Financial Times report. But at a press briefing Thursday afternoon, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre — asked about the US position on Ukraine joining NATO — affirmed that, while the Biden administration supports making membership available to any country that wishes to join, for now "we're focusing on making sure that the Ukrainian people have what they need to fight for their freedom."

NATO members are set to gather July 11 and 12 in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.

Gabrielius Landsbergis, the foreign minister of Lithuania, told Politico earlier this week that he believes it's important to show Ukraine that the alliance is taking concrete steps to address the country's aspirations.

"We need to show to Ukraine that their application is being taken seriously and they are making steps towards NATO, which at the end will end up with their full membership," he said.
Comments

Oh ya 2 year ago
Good call by someone as we know letting them join NATO would likely start WWIII and as we know the USA has not won a war since WWII. KOREAN WAR lost Vietnam war lost. Desert wars lost. And if you think the USA could somehow beat a real army unlike a few guys in the jungle or dessert with AK47s you need mental health help. The USA gave up the other day on their hyper sonic missile program because they can not get it to work. Russia has a very good system and every aircraft carrier in the US fleet could be sunk within a hour and America has nothing to shoot them down.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
×