(VOVWORLD) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told visiting NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday it was time for the military alliance to offer his country membership and that Kyiv needed more weapons to fight Russia.
 NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. (Photo: AFP/VNA) |
Zelenskiy made his comments at a joint news conference after talks with Stoltenberg. Zelenskiy said he believed a NATO Summit in Vilnius in July could become "historic" and that he had been invited to attend.
Stoltenberg said Ukraine's rightful place was in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and that membership and security guarantees for Ukraine would be high on the agenda of the alliance's July summit.
"NATO stands with you today, tomorrow and for as long as it takes," he said.
The Kremlin reiterated to reporters on a conference call that Moscow opposed NATO admitting Ukraine.
Ukraine announced a bid for fast-track membership of NATO last September.
Stoltenberg began his trip to Ukraine a day before NATO defence officials discuss new military supplies for Ukraine at their latest meeting at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
Denmark and the Netherlands announced on Thursday they would jointly donate 14 Leopard 2 tanks.
On Wednesday, Washington announced 325 million USD in new military aid, including ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), advanced missiles and anti-tank mines.