Stoltenberg Sets Condition for Kiev to Join NATO

Ukraine must “prevail as a sovereign, independent state” before it can formally join NATO, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said, despite Kiev already considering itself a de-facto member of the Western bloc. “NATO’s position on membership for Ukraine is unchanged,” Stoltenberg told a panel at the Munich Security Conference. “We agreed back in 2008 that Ukraine will become a member of the alliance and that is still our position.”