Ukraine’s Long Road to NATO Membership

 

Ever since Euromaidan, Ukraine has been on the path to closer integration with the European system. One of the most important elements of this process has been cooperation, and future membership, in the NATO military alliance.

Faced with an invasion of thousands of regular Russian troops on Ukrainian soil, the country’s military was forced to transform in 2014, after years of corruption, neglect and mismanagement.

Ukraine’s president Petro Poroshenko is applauded by some, for building the foundations for ambitious reforms – to meet NATO standards.

Now, Ukraine’s drive to join NATO is potentially more likely to be successful than ever before, according to Eastern European expert and author Taras Kuzio of the Johns Hopkins Center for Transatlantic Relations.

He believes that internal political fighting within the post-Orange Revolution leadership, led to Ukraine losing the benefits a NATO membership roadmap could have had.

According to Kuzio, former President Viktor Yushenko prioritized squabbling with rival Yulia Tymoshenko.

Russia’s hybrid war, Ukraine’s lackluster defense industry reform and some weariness among NATO allies and partners towards Kyiv, are arguably the main factors stifling the country’s chances of joining the U.S.-led military alliance currently.

But over the past four years, Ukraine began fulfilling some of the common requirements to join NATO, including establishing a long-term relationship with the military alliance. The majority of the country’s citizens also support membership.

The main problem, Taras Kuzio believes, has to do with Western partners choosing to consider the ramifications with Russia, rather than assessing Ukraine’s stand-alone bid.

Ukraine’s mammoth military industry is the world’s ninth largest arms exporter and its defense spending makes up 5 percent of GDP, more than some NATO states including Germany and the UK.

The Ukrainian government plans to hold a referendum on NATO membership in March next year. It’s expected a majority will vote in favor.