It is Ukraine’s NATO membership that will put an end to the war, as Russia started it in order to reshape Europe’s security order. This was stated by Danylo Lubkivsky, a member of the Security Council of the Kyiv Security Forum and Ukraine’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs in 2014, during a special KSF discussion entitled ‘NATO Summit in Ankara: Decisions, Challenges and the Way Forward’.

‘Russia launched this war to rewrite Europe’s security order. Let us recall Moscow’s ultimatum of December 2021, when Russia demanded that NATO withdraw its forces from across Eastern Europe. It wanted to turn Ukraine into a military bridgehead from which Russia could intimidate Europe, divide the Alliance and prepare for further aggression against NATO itself,” he noted.

The diplomat emphasised that Ukraine had thwarted these plans and was making a strategic investment every day in the security of Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States. According to him, unable to defeat Ukraine by military means, the Kremlin is attempting to divide the Alliance from within.

“Russia exploits anti-Ukrainian narratives to divide Poland; it plays on short-sighted nationalism and domestic political calculations in Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic; it supports both the far right and the far left in an effort to weaken Germany and France; it seeks to manipulate President Trump and the political debate in the United States to undermine American leadership and transatlantic unity,” noted Danylo Lubkivsky.

He emphasised that the key message from Ankara was the preservation of allied unity, which must now be translated into concrete action. “Protect Ukraine’s skies. Provide Ukraine with the military capabilities needed to break Russia's ability to wage this war. Recognise a simple strategic reality: Ukraine has bought Europe time to rebuild its defence. Now Europe must use this time wisely. America must return,” the diplomat emphasised.

The discussion took place in the Ukrainian capital as part of the new project ‘Kyiv Security Forum: Deep Strike’ – a series of expert discussions on pressing issues and key trends in Ukraine’s security, economy and foreign policy.

Participants in the discussion included Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Chairman of the Kyiv Security Forum, Prime Minister of Ukraine (2014–2016); and Danylo Lubkivsky, Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine (2014), Member of the Security Council, Kyiv Security Forum. Joining online were Tanya Hartman, Head, Policy East Team, Political Affairs and Security Policy Division, NATO HQ; Ambassador William Taylor, Distinguished Fellow, Atlantic Council, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine (2006–2009; 2019–2020); Ambassador Kurt Volker, US Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations (2017–2019); Marcin Buzanski, Director of the European Office of the Kyiv Security Forum (Brussels). The discussion was moderated by Mark Lobel, a BBC journalist and BBC presenter.

A video recording of the discussion is available in Ukrainian here and in English here.

The Kyiv Security Forum (KSF), founded by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Open Ukraine Foundation, is Ukraine’s leading international discussion platform on issues of war and peace. Prominent international leaders, politicians, diplomats, experts, activists, and journalists participate in KSF events. The platform operates on several levels simultaneously: keeping Ukraine in the spotlight of the global agenda; expanding our country’s circle of international partners; and building expertise on current security issues.