Although the draft peace plan of 20 points does not envisage Ukraine joining NATO, Kyiv continues to pursue this course, enshrined in the Constitution. These words were spoken during an exclusive interview with the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Taras Kachka.
According to Kachka, the path to NATO at a certain stage may differ from the path to the EU, but the Alliance remains a key security and military partner of Ukraine. He emphasized that NATO is the most effective tool for coordinating the actions of the Armed Forces, and Ukraine is actively implementing the Alliance’s standards in planning, logistics, and cooperation with partners.
And NATO also learns a lot from how interaction processes are organized, and this will not go away, this will continue to strengthen, so no one is putting NATO in brackets
– Taras Kachka
Under the fifth point of the peace plan, the United States, NATO, and the European signatory states must provide Ukraine with security guarantees reflecting Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty. The Deputy Prime Minister is convinced that this article serves as a basic geopolitical agreement on mutual assistance in case of aggression.
The Constitution clearly fixes the goal of integration into both NATO and the European Union. No one renounces this course and does not delay it
– Taras Kachka
Kachka also noted that the 20 points, combined with security guarantees, effectively realize the same obligations, but legally and politically these are different formats – and not weaker than NATO; on the contrary, they can carry greater legal weight as an individual mechanism.
And both the 20 points and security guarantees from the United States and European states – these are practically, legally and politically the realization of the same guarantees in substance, in their strength. And therefore this is not a question of it being weaker than NATO, but rather – it is stronger than NATO, because it is an individual legal instrument
– Taras Kachka
Despite this, he admitted that Ukraine’s progress on the path to NATO is currently slower than the pace of negotiations regarding the EU. Therefore, the main focus remains on bilateral security guarantees and integration based on the Sweden and Finland model – deep practical cooperation without formal membership.
The Constitution clearly fixes the aim of integration into NATO and the European Union. No one is abandoning this course or delaying it.
Prospects for Ukraine’s accession to NATO
On 30 September 2022, Ukraine submitted an application to join NATO in an accelerated process. The corresponding procedure envisions joining the Alliance without a prior MAP.
NATO officials emphasize that the decision on accession depends on the consent of all 30 allies. At the same time, leaders of several Central and Eastern European countries officially expressed support for Ukraine’s prospects of NATO membership.
Following the Vilnius summit of 11–12 July 2023, NATO member countries approved a three-part package to bring Ukraine closer to the Alliance, but Kyiv was not given a full invitation. The Ukrainian delegation returned home from the summit with security guarantees on the path to NATO.
As of 2025, NATO leadership continues to raise questions about Ukraine’s membership in the bloc. Some European countries express concern about the pace of progress, while the United States and Germany support Ukraine and provide various forms of political and military assistance, but without rapid full membership. Slovakia also expressed some skepticism about swift accession.
Despite the challenges, Kyiv continues to pursue a strategic course: developing bilateral security guarantees and deepening cooperation with NATO based on the Sweden and Finland model, which allows strengthening defense capabilities even without formal membership.