US reportedly opposes Zelenskyy’s participation in upcoming NATO summit

The United States does not support the proposal of inviting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the NATO summit to be held on June 24 in The Hague.

This was reported by the Italian news agency ANSA, citing sources within the alliance. “Almost all allies have expressed their confusion to Washington about this decision,” a diplomatic source told the publication.

The NATO summit will take place on June 24–25 at the World Forum Convention Center in the Dutch city. According to the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the summit is expected to host around 45 heads of state and government, 45 foreign and defence ministers, and about 6,000 delegation members. 

As of now, the Italian agency notes, invitations have only been sent to four of NATO’s Asian partners: Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand The main session of the summit, dedicated to the growth of defence spending and the final adoption of capability targets, is scheduled for June 25.

As for the format of Ukraine's participation, Ukrainian media reports that one of the options under consideration is to hold a NATO-Ukraine Council at the level of foreign and defence ministers. The issue of inviting Ukraine to the summit may be raised during an informal meeting of foreign ministers in Antalya, ANSA says. Earlier, the head of NATO's mission to Ukraine, Patrick Turner, said that Ukraine would be one of the priorities for NATO member states to discuss at the summit in The Hague in June. 

By Nazrin Sadigova