Stoltenberg believes Ukraine can be accepted into NATO with occupied territories

Former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg believes that a scenario in which Ukraine becomes a member of the Alliance while some of its territories are occupied is possible.

Source: European Pravda citing his interview with the Financial Times

Details: The former NATO Secretary General believes that there are ways to solve the problem of applying Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty on Collective Security in the case of Ukraine, if it becomes a member of the Alliance with occupied territories.

"Again, it is always very dangerous to compare because no parallels are 100% correct, but the United States has security guarantees to Japan. But they don’t cover the Kuril [Islands], which Japan regards as Japanese territory, controlled by Russia," he said.

Another example Stoltenberg cited was West Germany, which considered East Germany to be part of a bigger Germany: "They didn’t have an embassy in East Berlin. But Nato was of course only protecting West Germany."

"When there is a will, there are ways to find the solution. But you need a line which defines where Article 5 is invoked, and Ukraine has to control all the territory until that border," the former Secretary General added.

Even before he left office, Stoltenberg said that the decision on any future membership of Ukraine in the Alliance, including the occupied territories, should be taken by all allies.

The idea of a possible invitation of Ukraine to join NATO "in parts" (i.e. with the partially occupied territories) was actively discussed last year in the run-up to the Vilnius Summit. 

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