BritainB次元官网网址檚 defence secretary said Thursday that he wants NATO leaders to consider fast-tracking UkraineB次元官网网址檚 membership in the military alliance when they meet next month in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Ben Wallace met with Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anand as she visited London, where the pair talked about priorities for the upcoming NATO leadersB次元官网网址� summit on July 11 and 12.
Wallace said he believes the 31 member countries should consider allowing Ukraine to skip the membership action plan portion of the accession process.
B次元官网网址淪weden and Finland didnB次元官网网址檛 have any of that and I think that opens a very fair question about, should at Vilnius we just skip that and say that, subject to other conditions, Ukraine should be able to come in and join,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淎fter all, theyB次元官网网址檙e going to have the most experienced land forces in Europe, and probably one of the most heavily armed countries in Europe.B次元官网网址�
Anand said that Canada supports Ukraine joining NATO B次元官网网址渨hen the conditions are right.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淭his is an increasingly important issue,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淩ight now, Ukraine needs to win this war.B次元官网网址�
NATO members still have not agreed on whether to allow Sweden to join the alliance, which is something Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said earlier this week he hopes will be settled before the summit begins.
Fearing they might be targeted by Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine last year, Sweden and Finland abandoned their traditional positions of military non-alignment to seek protection under NATOB次元官网网址檚 security umbrella. Finland became a member in April.
Joining requires unanimous consent from all members, and Turkey has accused Sweden of being too lenient toward groups that Ankara says pose a security threat, including militant Kurdish groups and people associated with a 2016 coup attempt.
Hungary is also delaying its approval of SwedenB次元官网网址檚 candidacy but has never clearly stated publicly what its concerns are. NATO officials expect that it will follow suit once Turkey lifts its objections.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday he has called a meeting of senior officials from Turkey, Sweden and Finland on July 6 to try to overcome those objections.
Hungarian lawmakers, meanwhile, said a long-delayed vote in parliament on ratifying SwedenB次元官网网址檚 NATO accession bid would not happen until the autumn legislative session. That would almost certainly mean the Nordic nation will not join in time for the summit.
Wallace also came to CanadaB次元官网网址檚 defence over its failure to meet the NATO commitment of spending two per cent of its GDP on defence, saying itB次元官网网址檚 important that countries are spending more.
B次元官网网址淭he first battle is the cultural shift, that defence is no longer some discretionary spend stuck on the side of government, that it is in fact a core part of our job,B次元官网网址� Wallace said.
The U.K. spends more than two per cent already. Canada has increased spending in recent years but has no plans as of yet to reach the target it agreed to.
Wallace pointed out that meaningful growth in defence takes time.
B次元官网网址淵ou canB次元官网网址檛 buy a warship in a year, you canB次元官网网址檛 recruit and train another brigade in a year, it takes time,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淥f course I will say to my friends in Canada, and in France, and in Germany, and in Denmark, and in all those other countries that are not at two per cent, B次元官网网址榊ou should try and get there.B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址�
Anand had planned to visit Canadian troops in the United Kingdom who are training Ukrainian recruits, but the trip was cancelled due to poor weather.
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