NATO Sets Ukraine’s Integration Rules

NATO notes Ukraine’s considerable progress in carrying out the military reform, but stresses the necessity of a fair presidential election. Adherence to the democractic principles will be the main precondition of Ukraine’s integration into the alliance. Such was the sustained note of the third round of informal consultation between the NATO defense ministers and Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhen Marchuk, held for two days in Warsaw and ending yesterday.

What were the Warsaw talks’ specifics? First, they were held after a recent NATO large-scale expansion, with seven countries becoming its members. Second, they took place three weeks prior to the Istanbul summit to be attended by President Leonid Kuchma. In fact, those meeting in Warsaw had to determine the Ukraine-NATO Commission’s agenda in Turkey. All things considered, NATO is interested in three matters above all: Ukraine’s further military reform, Ukraine-NATO participation in peacekeeping missions, and how well the Ukrainian political leadership will keep the democratic values. Both sides placed big hopes in the Ukraine-NATO memorandum of understanding, envisaging use of Ukrainian cargo planes by NATO in its operations.

In his opening address yesterday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhen Marchuk stressed the symbolic character of the Warsaw consultations, as both sides could discuss “a number of problems, ranging from the reform of the Armed Force of Ukraine to the joint struggle against terrorism to participation in peacekeeping operations” before the Istanbul summit.

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer declared that Ukraine remained NATO’s partner and that the alliance sought political consultations and further practical cooperation with that country; that both sides had accomplished much together, although there remained considerable potential for an even better attainment. Mr. Scheffer noted that Ukraine had provided many examples of its being a producer and exporter, rather than a mere consumer, and that this was playing an important role in achieving peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic region and beyond it. The Secretary General thanked Kyiv for its peacekeeping contribution, particularly for the Ukrainian contingent in the Balkans, and mentioned Ukrainian aircraft used in the operations in Afghanistan, as well as Ukrainian peacekeepers in the coalition forces in Iraq.

Secretary General Scheffer paid serious attention to the military reform in Ukraine, stressing this country’s noticeable progress, and pointed out that the reform would always be a crucial component of the Action Plan. He said he was pleased to note that NATO was having a more intensive cooperation with Ukraine in that sphere than with other partners. He went on to say, however, that Ukraine must demonstrate such progress in other spheres as well, particularly in the development of a civil society, providing guarantees of the rule of the law, as these are critical prerequisites for Ukraine-NATO rapprochement. Mr. Scheffer warned that the entire international community was closely following the presidential campaign in Ukraine.