Nordic countries leaders' joint statement supports Ukraine's EU and NATO membership

Following the summit in Helsinki, the leaders of Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Ukraine, Finland and Sweden issued a joint statement on Wednesday in which they supported Ukraine's European and Euro-Atlantic integration. 

Source: text of the statement, reported by European Pravda and published on the site of the Government of Sweden

In a statement following the summit of Ukraine and the Nordic countries, the leaders of the latter emphasised that "the future of Ukraine and its people lies within the Euro-Atlantic family".

Quote: "The European Union has already recognized the European perspective of Ukraine and granted Ukraine the status of candidate country. The Nordic EU members will strongly support Ukraine in its reform efforts and in meeting the requirements neededy to start accession negotiations by the end of 2023, looking forward to the Commission's positive report," they said.

In the short term, the Nordic countries have pledged to continue working on providing civil assistance to Ukraine. 

As for Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration, the signatories of the statement noted that they support further military assistance to Kyiv through the Alliance's mechanisms, and also confirm their commitment to its "open door" policy. 

Quote: "Ukraine formally requested an accelerated procedure for NATO membership in September 2022. The Nordic NATO members will continue to support Ukraine on its path towards future membership," the statement reads. 

The leaders of the Nordic countries also expect to discuss the security issues of Ukraine and its membership at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023.

Reminder: Following the summit of Ukraine and the Nordic countries, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine should become the next member of the Alliance right after Sweden. 

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