Polish parliament passes bill backing Ukraine's entry into NATO.

The Sejm, the lower house of the Polish parliament, adopted a resolution in support of Ukraine's accession to NATO, Polish radio reported[1] on June 16. "Taking into account the dedication of the Ukrainian nation and its sovereign right to choose its own path of development, the Sejm of the Republic of Poland fully supports Ukraine's European and Euro-Atlantic aspirations," the resolution said. Polish MPs noted that Ukraine's military is becoming increasingly more interoperable with NATO forces and will benefit the Alliance.

The motion was approved with a vast majority of votes, with 443 deputies voting in support, two against, and seven abstained. Earlier today, deputies for the far-right Confederation coalition voiced opposition to the motion, saying such a step can draw Poland into conflict with Russia, the Polish Radio said. Poland's President Andrzej Duda[2] and the Polish Senate[3], the parliament's upper house, called for a clear NATO membership path for Ukraine.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said[4] earlier today that the Alliance may agree to simplify Ukraine's path to membership. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg noted[5] however that an invitation for Ukraine will not be a topic of the upcoming Vilnius summit in July.

Media: Biden allegedly supports simplified procedure for Ukraine's NATO accession U.S.

President Joe Biden has supported a proposal by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to announce that Ukraine does not need to implement a "membership action plan" (MAP) to join NATO, Axios reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.

News Editor

Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He also volunteers as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukrainer.

Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.

References

1. ^ reported (polskieradio24.pl)
2. ^ Duda (www.rferl.org)
3. ^ Senate (kyivindependent.com)
4. ^ said (kyivindependent.com)
5. ^ noted (kyivindependent.com)
6. ^ Media: Biden allegedly supports simplified procedure for Ukraine's NATO accessionU.S.

   President Joe Biden has supported a proposal by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to announce that Ukraine does not need to implement a "membership action plan" (MAP) to join NATO, Axios reported, citing two people familiar with the matter. (kyivindependent.com)