British Defense Minister Ben Wallace said Thursday that NATO should consider skipping a Membership Action Plan (MAP) as a requirement for Ukraine to join the Western military alliance.
The MAP is designed to ensure aspiring NATO members meet certain political, economic, and military standards to join the alliance. Waiving the MAP would speed up Ukrainian membership if NATO ever formally invites Kyiv to join.
According to the UK Parliament’s House of Commons Library, between 1999 and 2020, every new NATO member joined through a MAP. But Finland and Sweden were invited last year without having to go through the MAP process.
“I think we should absolutely look at skipping the Membership Action Plan,” Wallace said. “But of course, we have to put some realism in this space that there are 31 members of NATO now and, you know, we have to all move together.”
Ukraine is looking to be invited to join the alliance at the Vilnius summit that will be held from July 11-12. But most NATO members agree that Ukraine can’t join the alliance while it’s fighting a war with Russia and is looking for other guarantees to give Kyiv.
Recent media reports said President Biden was “open” to the idea of waiving the MAP for Ukraine, but he told reporters that wasn’t the case. “They got to meet the same standards. So I’m not going to make it easier,” he said.
Ukraine was first promised it would eventually become a NATO member in 2008 despite the fact that Ukrainian entry into the alliance is a major red line for Russia. Any new promises for Kyiv at the Vilnius summit will only serve to prolong the war, as one of Russia’s main motives for invading was Ukraine’s alignment with NATO.
Ben Wallace wants to be leader of NATO. I have a better idea. Let’s get US out of it including any alliance with the UK.
I have a better Idea why don’t just dissolve NATO. Then all European countries, UK and US, Canada can look after their own defence rather than defence of other countries. I don’t like Trump at all who is another warmonger but he was right when he said U.S. was paying for the defence of other countries in NATO. Dissolve NATO. It has no reason to exist. Then this fat pig the poodle with a big bark can shut big fat warmongering mouth since UK’s military is so small and insignificant these days and can fit into a single Premier League soccer stadium. Ben Wallace only talks big is because of UK’s military alliance with U.S. If the relationship ended tomorrow. No one in the world would take what Ben Wallace or UK says seriously in the world anymore and good riddance to that. UK has always been a nefarious and malign influence on the world stage. I would love to see the UK and US military alliance ended for no other reason than the UK will become insignificant and powerless and not be able to stir up trouble its modus opeandi on the world stage. UK does not have a good reputation worldwide.
I don’t think the US should be involved in foreign conflicts. Europeans, Canadians, etc. can do what they want.
If only Operation Sea Lion had succeeded, maybe UK would be more humbled and less daring.
On the contrary, Oswald Mosely would have allied with the Nazis against Russia.
Hush… I’m trying to follow… So… We skip the membership process …to …approve Ukraine? …But… …we can’t… …because all 31 NATO members have to approve? Hmmm… Wow! That Ben Wallace guy can achieve impossible things. He can actually be even dumber than he actually looks. (Sarcasm–wait? Do I still have to label it “Sarcasm?”)
It’s hard to do sarcasm when life is a parody of itself.
Britain wants a war with Russia asap.
It is odd, because in the long term the UK I expect would ally itself with Russia to balance out the German/French alliance.
But wants most Americans to do the fighting and dieing on the their behalf in such a crazy conflict which cost the lives of billions worldwide. I think most polls in U.S. indicate that most American people want nothing to do with this unpopular Ukraine war despite the actions of the criminal Biden regime who have become unpopular in U.S. because of this war and the Afghanistan debacle. Even Biden has categorically said no to Americans getting directly involved on a massive scale because he knows how unpopular it would be with most Americans. Britain is on thier own with their insignificant soccer stadium sized military if they are ever crazy enough which looks like they are these days in many quarters in that insignifcant Island to go to war with Russia.
“I think we should absolutely look at skipping the Membership Action Plan,” Wallace said. “But of course, we have to put some realism in this space that there are 31 members of NATO now and, you know, we have to all move together.”
I’m waiting for the unanimity part being skipped too.
It’s like when you pretend that you want to get into a bar fight to show your friends that you’re a beast, but you want them to step in to stop the fight because you’re worried about losing your teeth…
Yep. Or some really large bribes paid using our $.
Right, great idea then you are going to end up quite possibly with a dictatorship with scant respect for the rights of ethnic minorities as part of your club. Why? If the the Russians are defeated they won’t be back for a while, time enough to reform yourselves and then apply for membership.
If the Russians are defeated, Ukraine will also be defeated.
Yup, and many more in addition to those two. The Russophobes of the world should be praying, along with everyone else, that Russia never comes to believe that it is in danger of being defeated in this war.
According to articles by Declan Hayes. The Brits MI5 along with Americas CIA have their paws all over Zelensky and the turmoil in Ukraine going back decades. The end goal was to topple the Putin regime. They even turned Prigozhin. Now that they’re close it looks like they’ve reconsidered. Better to deal with the devil you know than the unknown that may come next. However, once you’re instrumental in the spilling of blood. It is not easily forgotten by the decedents of the people whose blood you spilled. They will not easily forgive your involvement. The killing of people for economic or political gain brews long term hatred’s.
Others are saying it was over the billion Ruble contracts that were no more and it was a straight out coup by a upset thug who lost those contracts, that was going to be put down with brutal Chechnya shock troops who would have destroyed those Wagner forces traveling in one big juicy target.
What ever the reasoning the end result is the same. The weakening of one Heir Putin. The problem is the mountain of nuclear weapons that Russia is sitting on and their security. If Russia once again becomes a failed state? What then? Does the West once again scramble to secure the nuclear weapons in Russia? Will the emerging powers in Russia after Putin is gone allow it? The forces behind the push to topple Russia may want to think twice.
Is Putin truly “hurt” or is that just more western spin that plays on western’s perceptions of how Russia operates, that tries to use our western ways and culture to explain what is occurring?
Some say this will strengthen him among the Russian people not weaken him.
We’ll just have to wait and see. The whole story hasn’t played out yet. I’ll make more popcorn and watch.
The owner of the rolling sausage kitchen. Perfect training for leading a bunch of mercenaries.
You do it for Ukraine, you’ll do it for others in the future.
At least NATO is keeping the Soviet Union from breaching the Berlin wall and rolling into West Germany ….in a alternative universe where there still is a need for NATO and the USSR still lives.
Too funny. In 1991, when the Soviet Union dissolved and returned as Russia, Russia wanted to become a member of the Western Alliance, be treated as one of the other members. America, the shining house on the hill, rejected that idea, then began gathering up countries to join NATO, host nukes, on Russia’s border. So now, consideration is being made for Ukraine to become a member of the Western Alliance. Funny, and tragic.
The Brits as usual are desperate to appear relevant. Nothing more humiliating than being a citizen of a defunct empire.
The fear of Ukraine joining NATO was the primary reason Russia invaded Ukraine. From a strategic standpoint, NATO missiles in Ukraine would be like having Russian missiles in Texas. How would the U.S. react if Mexico formed a strategic alliance with Russia or China, and wanted to make Puerto Vallarta a deep water nuclear submarine base? I’d guess not too dissimilar to Russia with Ukraine.
“The fear of Ukraine joining NATO was the primary reason Russia invaded Ukraine”
Not only was it not the primary reason, it wasn’t a reason at all.
Vladimir Putin is not an idiot. Therefore he knows that any NATO state can veto the admission of a new member state, and that Russia enjoys good relations with several NATO member states who would be happy to veto any move to admit Ukraine in return for e.g. trade incentives.
On several occasions, Putin offered a peace plan that would forbid Ukraine from joining NATO. He made many statements before his invasion that Ukraine joining NATO was a red line for him. The same would be for Georgia. Russia is being boxed out of its western maritime access, and Ukraine and Georgia joining NATO would be a major strategic threat to Russia.
So on several occasions, Putin offered a peace plan based on something that is never going to happen anyway not happening, and then went to war because it’s only never going to happen rather than him getting a massage with a happy ending and a sweet whisper in his ear confirming that it’s never going to happen?
Biden has never ever offered anything but a path of lies and threats.
Biden has no integrity and by now Putin knows it.
I agree completely. Biden has not so much as an iota more integrity or honesty than Putin does.
You just can’t face reality, you must shape it to fit your narrative. Putin is a man with integrity and dignity, like it or not.
Biden is a man without integrity, he is a killer.
The differences between Putin and Biden don’t involve “integrity and dignity.”
They’re both murderous sociopaths.
That’s reality.
You don’t have to like reality.
Reality’s real whether you like it or not.
Reality is in the eyes of the beholder, I happen to see a different reality than you see.
You see what you want to see because it’s what you want to see.
I look for what’s actually there, whether I expect to like it or not.
We are not the same.
You only see what you want to see as long as it fits your narrative you see it. Without narrative you pull down your blinders and go to sleep.
I’d love to be able to do that, but I’ve never been able to. Even when I don’t like reality, it gets right up in my face and forces me to notice it. Not all of us are capable of living in a fantasy world like you.
And you are qualified to judge me, it is called hubris.
I’m commenting about what is on the record, and what is on the map, and try not speculate about someone’s motives.
You SPECIFICALLY speculated on Putin’s motives:
“The fear of Ukraine joining NATO was the primary reason Russia invaded Ukraine”
The problem with that is that there was no reality-based fear of Ukraine joining NATO. It was never going to happen, and because Putin is not a fucking idiot, he knew it was never going to happen. QED, that was not a reason, primary or otherwise, for his decision to invade Ukraine.
Thomas: Google “NATO on the Map.” Ukraine joining NATO would certainly be a major blow to Russian strategic security. There were many statements Putin made about not allowing Ukraine to become part of NATO prior to his invasion. I’m not defending the invasion, but I’m suggesting that NATO has played a part in nudging him into the war.
Which part of “the chance of Ukraine ever becoming a NATO member — until Putin made it a de facto NATO member for the foreseeable future, that is — was zero, zip, zilch, nada, bukpes” was unclear?
Yes, Putin used the supposed prospect of Ukraine in NATO as a convenient excuse. But it was not a reason, because it was not a possibility.
Which is not to say that NATO didn’t work hard to give him the excuse — or that NATO should even exist, let alone continue expanding.
I don’t know where you come up with “zero chance” of Ukraine joining NATO. There is zero evidence of that. It’s pure conjecture on your part, with nothing to back it up. You’re just making a straw man argument.
Putin knows he can’t trust any NATO state.
If Biden wants peace, what could he do since he refuses to negotiate with Putin, what is it he wants. Peace, if he really wanted peace he would negotiate with the devil.