Despite heated debates within the Alliance and Russian threats of military escalation, Ukraine's accession to NATO will take place sooner or later, predicted one of Ukraine's leading diplomats, Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK Vadim Prystaiko in an interview with Newsweek.

According to the diplomat, the recent expansion of NATO means that now there is no reason to deny Ukraine membership in the bloc.

Prystaiko believes Ukraine's stunning success in nearly 14 months of full-scale fighting against Russia means NATO should ask the country and its seasoned military to join the bloc.

He is convinced that this is a purely political decision and Ukraine is able to fulfill the list of conditions, no matter how long it may be..

\? Your only business is to fight against Russia, this is not even a fight against China,” says Prystaiko.

He added that if NATO countries want to have someone who is not just ready, but knows how to fight this fight, Ukraine should be invited to become part of the alliance..

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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said that Ukraine will eventually become a member of the transatlantic alliance, but both he and national leaders, including President Joe Biden, have made it clear that this is a long-term goal..

It seems almost impossible that all 31 members of the alliance - perhaps 32 if Sweden does manage to join - agree to take Kyiv while active fighting with Russian forces continues..

However, the broader narrative appears to be shifting in favor of Ukraine..

“We now talk much more easily about membership in the European Union and NATO than in peacetime,” Prystaiko said..

According to him, Ukraine is able to fulfill all the conditions: it is a democratic country, and the corruption in which the allies accuse it irritates the Ukrainians themselves, so work towards its eradication continues..

“And by the way, I know a couple of NATO members who can teach us everything about corruption,” he hinted, without specifying the names of these countries..

Ukraine is ready to provide military spending at the level of 2% of GDP, and also the ability to withstand the pressure of a sworn enemy.

Some of the traditional reasons for not offering Ukraine membership — fear of provoking Russian aggression, concerns about the quality of Ukrainian military training, and systemic corruption — seem less relevant as the war started by Moscow deepens and its ties to the West freeze..

Alliance expansion to include Finland – and most likely Sweden – has huge implications for NATO, Russia and Ukraine. Kyiv sees an opportunity it has already tried to seize by demanding an accelerated NATO entry process.

“Ukraine has already been recognized as a candidate for NATO membership.. I know right now my government is saying that a Membership Action Plan is out of the question, we don't need it anymore. The Swedish-Finnish example shows this,” the Ambassador stressed..

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NATO membership is not strictly formalized, the path of each nation is dictated by its unique characteristics. In the 1995 NATO Enlargement Study. states that potential candidates must have “a functioning democratic political system based on a market economy; fair treatment of minorities; commitment to resolve conflicts peacefully; ability and readiness to make a military contribution to NATO operations; and commitment to democratic civil-military relations and institutions"

Since Sweden and Finland already met these criteria, their 2022 applications did not require a MAP, which could result in a significant delay in accession. The only real obstacles for Helsinki and Stockholm were skeptics in the governments of Hungary and Turkey..

" The Ukrainians took advantage of this opportunity,” Prystaiko joked about accelerating the entry of Finland and Sweden into NATO.

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In his opinion, it is pointless to use old arguments to deny membership to Ukraine now..

\? The Baltic countries [Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania] are very close to Russians. Because it will annoy the Russians? How can we irritate them even more if they are already irritated to the extreme and are at war with us physically? "

He added that arguments like those that Russia was unhappy with NATO encroachment on its borders are also unfounded, because in this case the Kremlin could go to war with NATO, and not with Ukraine..

“How can you threaten NATO if you cannot defeat the Ukrainians? "

On the eve of a full-scale invasion, in February 2022, Vadym Prystaiko stated that Ukraine could refuse to apply for NATO membership if it would help prevent a war..

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said that these words were taken out of context, but noted that for the sake of peace and the preservation of the lives of citizens, Ukraine is ready to engage in dialogue with countries and international organizations.

For almost a year now, the Ukrainian authorities have been regularly raising the issue of Ukraine joining the Alliance without going through the stage of the NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP), as Finland did. Read more in the article by Vladimir Kravchenko “Will (and when) Ukraine will become the 33rd member of NATO?