MFA: We in touch with Italian partners on specifics of Meloni's proposal to extend NATO Article 5 to Ukraine without membership
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine welcomes "as part of the discussion on providing Ukraine with long-term security guarantees" the idea of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to extend NATO Article 5 to Ukraine without granting full membership in the Alliance.
As stated by the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Heorhiy Tykhy, answering the question of Interfax-Ukraine regarding the Ukrainian position on Meloni's proposal, Ukraine "welcomes this statement as part of the discussion on providing Ukraine with long-term security guarantees and guaranteeing security and peace for Ukraine in general." At the same time, he emphasized the importance of these discussions "expanding to various elements."
"As for this proposal specifically, we are in touch with our Italian partners to clarify the specifics of this proposal. As of now, it has been heard as a general idea. We want to understand what exactly is meant in more detail, more specifically by this conversation," the spokesman said at a briefing in Kyiv on Friday.
The spokesman stressed that Ukraine believes that it is de facto already part of the collective security of the Euro-Atlantic space, and "concerns and fears regarding Ukraine's integration into NATO are and remain exaggerated."
Earlier, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni proposed extending Article 5 of the NATO Treaty to Ukraine without granting it membership in the military alliance, which, she said, would be "a guarantee of stable, long-term and effective security."