Britain: Path is Open for Ukraine to Join NATO

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said today, Friday, on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue meetings in Singapore that his country supports Ukraine's accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and that "the way is open" for it to do so, but indicated that political reality may slow the process.

He also said that it is not possible to add countries to give NATO's membership amid war and that the way forward is to continue helping and arming Ukraine for its security in the short and long term, according to Reuters.

"The best thing we can do to help Ukraine now is to help it defeat Russia," Wallace said in an interview. "Then is to make sure it's willing, able, and resilient."

Ukraine's potential membership is on the agenda of an upcoming NATO summit in Lithuania in July. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country wanted a "clear decision" on its inclusion in the alliance at that summit.

Ben Wallace said that work is also underway to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, noting that such guarantees may range from joint defense agreements to the supply of weapons and ammunition.