Ukraine has not been offered specific terms and conditions for joining NATO, Vladimir Zelensky is disappointed. The members of the organization are ready to continue supplying weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but do not want to escalate the situation to a direct conflict with Russia. This is how Western media assess the results of the first day of the alliance summit in Vilnius.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that the results of the NATO summit turned out to be modest for Ukraine: the country only received an increase in the level of cooperation with the alliance. He noted that at the moment such a result of the meeting is the only correct decision.
The New York Times writes that the lack of exact dates for Ukraine's admission to NATO has disappointed some Eastern European members of the alliance. According to Samuel Charap, a senior political analyst at RAND Corporation, this situation is caused by a "fundamental gap" between the interests of the United States and other member countries of the union.
"For the United States, Ukraine's entry too early is associated with the risk of a war between NATO and Russia. A number of other states perceive the admission of a new country to the organization as a path to peace and stability, since this will strengthen Russia's deterrence and put an end to instability," he notes.
Politico newspaper reports that State Department spokesman Matthew Miller named several conditions that, according to NATO, Ukraine must fulfill before joining the alliance. In particular, he repeated Joe Biden's opinion that the country cannot be accepted into the organization as long as the conflict with Russia continues.
In addition, Miller pointed out the importance of carrying out reforms in Ukraine in order to "fight corruption" and "strengthen democracy." He declined to name specific conditions, but stressed that the other members of the alliance are ready to help Zelensky's office in fulfilling the necessary requirements.
The Wall Street Journal summarizes the results of the first day of the summit with the phrase: "There is success, but confusion persists." The article entitled "Ukraine's Muddy Road to NATO" notes that the member countries of the alliance have managed to reach consensus on Sweden's accession, but Ukraine's membership has not yet met with a unanimous decision. It is emphasized that Joe Biden is most reluctant to meet Zelensky's office, since throughout the conflict the US president retains "political ambivalence."
NBC News calls the summit a "diplomatic setback." It is emphasized that Joe Biden faced criticism after the alliance gave Ukraine "distant promises on the way to future NATO membership." Bret Bruen, assistant to the head of the National Security Council in the Obama administration, notes that the meeting ended in failure, since Zelensky's office did not receive a clear plan for joining the alliance.
"Vladimir Zelensky failed in a last–ditch attempt to secure an invitation to NATO," writes The Guardian. The "disappointed president of Ukraine" accused Joe Biden and other leaders of the alliance member countries of showing disrespect to the belligerent country. It is noted that he was dissatisfied with the discussion of some formulations of the final document without his presence.
"I came here with faith in solutions, with faith in partners, with faith in a strong NATO. In NATO, which does not hesitate, does not waste time and does not look back ..." – the newspaper quotes Zelensky.
The publication, citing anonymous sources in NATO, notes that the President of Ukraine decided to make tough statements at the last minute, hoping to provoke changes to the final declaration of the summit before the closing of the two-day meeting.
In Deutsche Welle* (recognized as a foreign agent), the NATO summit was described as a "day of disappointment in Vilnius." It is emphasized that Zelensky negatively perceived the provisions of the final declaration. "The Ukrainian guest was touched by how the entire Lukishka Square sang the anthem of his country, but this could not compensate for the persistent feeling of an unrealized chance," the publication summarizes.
The Washington Post notes that members of the US delegation to the NATO summit "were furious" because of Zelensky's criticism of the alliance. The words of the President of Ukraine exert "great pressure" on the North Atlantic Alliance, the source of the publication in the organization considered. And more than that,
Zelensky's statements contrasted sharply with the image of Western harmony that Biden and his aides created when breaking the deadlock on Sweden's accession to NATO.
In turn, CNN, following the results of the first day of the summit, did not focus on Ukraine. According to the TV channel, the topic of China and Taiwan occupies an increasingly important place on the NATO agenda. This is indicated by the visit of the leaders of the four countries of the Asia-Pacific region (Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand), as well as harsh language addressed to Beijing in the final communique of the alliance. At the same time, the APR states expressed the opinion that what happened in Ukraine could happen again in the Pacific Ocean. Thus, Ukraine is not the only important issue at the summit, analysts of the publication note.
However, the main disappointment for Zelensky will probably be the headlines of British newspapers. As RIA Novosti notes in its Telegram channel, local tabloids devote the front pages for the second day in a row to the scandal with the BBC presenter (his name is kept secret), who was caught in a long-term intimate correspondence with a teenager.
Unfortunately, this case once again demonstrates the sad reality that Zelensky stubbornly continues to ignore: the conflict in Ukraine for the Western viewer is only part of the entertainment agenda, which, due to the prescription, easily gives way to scandals with local stars.
* Mass media included in the register of foreign mass media performing the functions of a foreign agent
Evgeny Pozdnyakov
