Ukraine not yet ready for NATO membership: Biden

Washington, July 10 Ukraine is not yet ready for a NATO membership, US President Joe Biden said, adding that Russia needs to first end its ongoing invasion of Kiev, only then can the military alliance consider adding the war-torn nation to its ranks.

In a CNN interview on Sunday night, the President said that although talks of granting Kiev a NATO membership was "premature", the US and its allies in the military allinace will continue to provide Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his forces the security and weaponry they need to try to end the war with Russia.

“I don’t think there is unanimity in NATO about whether or not to bring Ukraine into the NATO family now, at this moment, in the middle of a war,” Biden said.

“For example, if you did that, then, you know -- and I mean what I say -- we’re determined to commit every inch of territory that is NATO territory. It’s a commitment that we’ve all made no matter what. If the war is going on, then we’re all in war. We’re at war with Russia, if that were the case.”

The President said that he has spoken to Zelensky at length about the issue, saying that he has told his Ukrainian counterpart that the US would keep providing security and weaponry for Ukraine like it does for Israel while the process plays out.

“I think we have to lay out a rational path for Ukraine to be able to qualify to be able to get into NATO,” Biden told CNN, while noting that he refused Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demands before the war for a commitment not to admit Ukraine because the alliance has “an open-door policy.”

“But I think it’s premature to say, to call for a vote, you know, in now, because there’s other qualifications that need to be met, including democratisation and some of those issues."

Biden made the remarks before embarking on a week-long trip to Europe during which he will attend the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The ongoing war and Zelensky's push for a NATO membership will be the main focus of discussions at the Summit which will also be attended by the leaders of Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and the European Union.

Regarding Washington's announcement last week to send cluster munitions to Ukraine for the first time, Biden told CNN that it was a “difficult decision” to give Kiev the controversial ammunition, but that he was convinced it was necessary because the war-torn country was running out of ammunition.