During his working visit to the United States, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
The President thanked the Secretary General for NATO's continued support for Ukraine, noting the importance of NATO representative’s participation in the Crimea Platform Summit in August this year in Kyiv.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked Jens Stoltenberg to facilitate the release of almost 450 Ukrainians detained in the temporarily uncontrolled territories and in Russia.
The President stressed that over the past two years, Ukraine has almost completed the formation of a new integrated national security system, which is entirely based on the standards of NATO member states.
"Our course for NATO membership, the principles and standards of the Alliance are the basis of all guiding documents in the field of national security and defense," the President said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy informed Jens Stoltenberg about our country's implementation of the Annual National Programs under the auspices of the NATO-Ukraine Commission. He expressed hope that NATO member states would be able to identify an exhaustive list of reforms, relevant criteria and "markers" for Ukraine, the fulfilment of which would allow us to move to the next stage of integration with the Alliance.
Ukraine's interaction with NATO using the enhanced opportunities partner status was discussed.
Speaking about the importance of joint efforts with the Alliance to strengthen security in the Black Sea region, the President stressed the importance of further increasing the presence of the NATO fleet in the Black Sea, as well as cooperation between the Black Sea coast states. Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine is ready to actively participate in the relevant joint actions with the Alliance, and also expressed interest in expanding the number of joint exercises.
