Ukraine's future lies in NATO, the Western military alliance's chief Jens Stoltenberg underscored on Thursday during his first visit to the country since Russia's invasion 14 months ago.
"Let me be clear: Ukraine's rightful place is in the euro-Atlantic family. Ukraine's rightful place is in NATO. And over time, our support will help you to make this possible," Stoltenberg told reporters during a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv.
He pledged continued military support for Ukraine, saying that, so far, NATO allies had trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian troops and provided 65 billion euros ($71.31 billion) of military aid alone.
"NATO stands with you today, tomorrow and for as long as it takes," Stoltenberg stated, before inviting Zelenskiy to the NATO summit in Vilnius in July.
($1 = 0.9115 euros)
(Reporting by Reuters TV, writing by Sabine Siebold and Benoit Van Overstraeten)
