Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has recently acknowledged that Ukraine will not become a member of Nato.
Nato member nations have so far supplied Ukraine with weapons and sought to isolate Vladimir Putin by imposing harsh economic sanctions, seeking to avoid becoming directly involved.
But what exactly is Nato, and why was it formed?
Read more: Why isn't Ukraine a member of Nato?
What is Nato?
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, also known as Nato, is a military alliance formed in 1949 by 12 countries, including the UK, US, Canada, and France. Nato members agree to come to each other's aid in the event of an armed attack against any one member state.
Nato currently has 30 members and, for a country to become part of the alliance, it has to be approved by all current members.
The original aim was to counter the threat of post-war Russian expansion in Europe and, in 1955, Soviet Russia responded to Nato by creating its own military alliance called the Warsaw Pact. After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, some of the countries that had formed the Warsaw Pact switched and became Nato members.
Nato says it is "committed to the peaceful resolution of disputes. If diplomatic efforts fail, it has the military power to undertake crisis-management operations.”
The organisation's headquarters are in Brussels, and its current secretary general is Jens Stoltenberg. North Macedonia has been the most recent addition to the alliance, joining in 2020.
A country must be approved by all current members for it to become part of Nato. Nations that wish to join must meet certain requirements and have to follow a membership action plan, an application that includes outlining security and political policies.
Nato says that, to join the alliance, "nations are expected to respect the values of the North Atlantic Treaty, and to meet certain political, economic, and military criteria, set out in the Alliance’s 1995 Study on Enlargement". Criteria include fair treatment of minority populations, a commitment to resolving conflicts peacefully, and a commitment to democratic civil-military relations and institutions.
Nato says that membership is open to "any other European state in a position to further the principles of the treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area”.
What countries are part of Nato?
When Nato was originally formed, there were just twelve members. Now, there are 30 members including:
- Albania
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Canada
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Montenegro
- Netherlands
- North Macedonia
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Turkey
- UK
- USA
Is Ukraine a member of Nato?
Ukraine is not a member of Nato. Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has recently said that the country will not become a Nato member. However, it is a "partner" country, which means that there is an understanding that it could join in the future.
This status is awarded to non-member nations that have "made significant contributions to Nato-led operations and missions”. Nato established a Ukraine-Nato commission in 1997, which enabled discussion on security issues and the furthering of a Nato-Ukraine relationship, without the country being a formal member.
However, factors taken into account when considering membership include "unresolved external disputes", meaning that it is currently unlikely that Ukraine will be granted membership to the alliance any time soon.
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