steps to the 33rd year, in terms of our ability, how we will approach concrete solutions during the summit, i know the secretary general personally, i know the people who work with him, i know the nature of our alliance, the alliance is ready to do everything possible to achieve progress in three directions, the first is its own. defense and security of the alliance, not only from the point of view of the decisions we made at the strategic level, but it is about the implementation of practical decisions carried out by our representatives on different flanks, in addition, it is about financial commitments, we must achieve the level of 2% of gdp for defense spending, as well as for...

military colleagues demand that our needs in this area, we know that our fulfill all the structural features of our armed forces, in order to , to see how we change our overall concept and strategy. these decisions will make alliances stronger, will also increase our ability to support in ukraine, that is, we are talking about... only sutonal decisions, the second line of our decisions will relate to supporting ukraine itself, and here the center of gravity will be made so that these were not just words, but practical, purely practical things, both in the military and economic terms, in financial support, diplomatic support and so on, that is. nato council ukraine, which is

a new body, is not just a formality. the volume of work and efforts performed within this structure do not allow it to be called a purely formal decision. support is very practical. we in latvia provide support to ukraine at the level of about 1% of ours. and this level will increase, as the whole society supports ukraine, everyone, we also expect that other allies will support ukraine more actively in terms of defense production, which admiral bauer also said yesterday, and which the secretary general of nato has repeatedly spoken about, and an interesting change within the defense sector, industry. e is that we

are talking not only about contractors, about large contractors, about large companies, but also about increasing investment in defense, plus, of course, we will take into account lessons learned and experience, breakthrough technologies and new practices, that's all there will be more to work out and of course the restraint of russia, which requires both sanctions and the practical implementation of sanctions, not just, not just formulating new packages, working with partners, through the treasury, through the ministry of finance, through the european union to identify what are the gaps that need to be filled, from where russia... gets some more details or elements

to cover these gaps. we must also ensure that the work of the eu and nato is complementary. there can be no competition here in terms of defense industry. we must be united in operational terms compatibility and standardization. and as benedetta said. we will also cooperate to counter such countries as china, iran, a lot of work needs to be done in a practical sense, all this will be the focus of our attention before the summit, so it's not just words on paper or words, it's practical things. thank you for this information, i will contact mr. ambassador chaly, we have already heard. in previous

discussions, what are the expectations in ukraine, maybe we could continue this topic. thank you. good morning everyone, thanks to the organizers for giving us the opportunity to discuss this very important topic, i am today. we heard about the real situation in the presentation of the vice-prime minister, and i continue this topic. what happened in the past years, i will draw your attention to... this is in december 2021, then the minister of foreign affairs, the minister of legal affairs of russia, tried to blackmail nato, and this was also

about the accession member - sweden, finland. as mr. baur said, the ukrainian flag will be next to the nato flags, but the question is when, but i think this is answering the question of when, it had to happen yesterday, not when it will happen, now the question is how to do it, this is a historic opportunity washington summit, my position here is somewhat different from our officials what. spoke, i think that we have such an opportunity, and those who have spent a lot of time in cooperation with nato support me in this, we must do everything necessary, today

is a unique situation, russia's war against ukraine, against ukrainian sovereignty, security in europe, it's all done. very urgent, therefore, the question of whether ukraine should be in nato or outside nato. we believe that ukraine should be in nato. apparently, no one objects to this, but my position, and actually the position of our center, and my colleagues in kyiv, security formation, if ukraine and our partners now lose this opportunity in the near future, then there will be two scenarios in ukraine: first.. let's remember henry keysenger, he said that ukraine is outside of nato, it is a big mistake, it should be in the ranks of nato, because the security of europe will be more guaranteed, so it will be

good for putin, because in this case, ukraine will never be against russia. and russia will safer and one more scenario is outside. ukraine's membership in nato excludes such a gray area, for the sake of which the russians started this war, so now it is not a question of the following years, or any previous or subsequent negotiations, it should be an invitation given to ukraine to join the washington summit, nothing else. no, it won't be right, we have to understand that this is not only a pragmatic issue for nato in terms of security, but in this war, symbols and messages are very important, and after all, i spent a lot of time in discussions

with my american colleagues, believe me to me, they may change their mind about this issue as well. mr. ambassador pifer knows very well that this summit will take place a few days before the convention , how can this happen, but i can remind you, and the meeting of the republican party, that is, it will be part of the election campaign, so to speak, i can assure you that president biden can to take a rather historic, important step. i believe he will do it, he will demonstrate his leadership, the leadership of the united states in the world and his personal leadership and demonstrate that what happened happened extremely important in historical terms, and

our military on the front line are very much waiting for this decision, believe me. we expect a lot, but we believe. thank you very much, mr. ambassador, charlie, you very rightly said that it is, it will show the ability. to determination and to make important historical decisions, panel, i ask you to take the floor, thank you rasmussen foundation organization, we have been working on issues of security and security guarantees since the 22nd year, and i am happy that this is... language and terminology, which was also developed by us organization, the kyiv security forum

, is now actively discussed and featured, but this is not an end in itself, it is only a bridge to ensure that there is a certain continuity, durability and stability in our work, now that we are building a new security architecture, of which ukraine should be a part, we must move on from the language of vilnes and already move on to... an invitation, since ukraine cannot end this war while being in the syrian zone, and this experience of sweden and finland is also proven. first of all, this indicates the need to provide ukraine with everything it needs weapons, and secondly, a clear vision of the ukrainian european. future, that is why president zelensky created a new international

group, which should develop a series of recommendations for ukraine, for partners, on the eve of the washington summit, i cannot predict exactly what these decisions will be, but i know what we will talk about, these are three questions , the first is, first of all, that there is such a ... that the invitation will encourage the escalation of putin's war, but putin escalates this war all the time, even when there is such reluctance on the part of the members of the alliance invite ukraine, maybe the invitation will have the opposite effect and the escalation will decrease somewhat, if we give it. and the invitation, it will also demonstrate our determination and

perhaps give ukraine an additional opportunity to ensure lasting peace in the future. second, in vilnius, in vilnius, the allies said: "we will send an invitation when the requirements are met." what are the conditions, what are the requirements, what are we talking about. it was about the technical requirements, but the technical solutions had already been decided and it was said that it was for this one the reasons do not need a map, this issue is resolved, the third is the idea that an invitation is already membership, and can entail the act of the fifth article, but this is not the case, there are several steps... by invitation and actual membership , they can it will take years, but what we

can do for ukraine's real membership in nato is, first of all, to remove all precautionary restrictions on providing ukraine with the necessary weapons, the second is to provide adequate assistance in air defense systems, this is not. means our soldiers should be here but there should be enough systems to provide and navigate in the black sea, and to protect the borders in ukraine, and what is being done in latvia, lithuania, is also about allocating a part of our defense expenditures in favor of ukraine in order to reduce the parameters of putin's war. and bring ukraine closer to membership by inviting it to the alliance

, thank you very much, i think it is very important to think about the consequences and the cost if the invitation to the summit is not extended to ukraine, and about calculating other possibilities, i see that to we are joined online by michal sherba, welcome mr. sherba, please share. your views on what we're discussing, we're discussing the big event, the alliance's washington summit in july. and we discuss and analyze the cost and benefits of inviting ukraine or some other formats of support to ukraine. greetings to all, it is a pleasure to welcome you from warsaw. i want to say that we

, as the parliamentary assembly of nata, are very happy to take part in this event. i want to say very clearly and repeat what was said in the new strategic concept of nato. there is russia the most significant and direct threat to the security of the alliance and peace and stability in the euro-atlantic region. and this threat will not go anywhere as long as putin's criminal regime is found. in power, then we must prepare for a confrontation for decades, possible, and realistically speaking, the only thing that can destabilize us putin's power is a strategic defeat in ukraine, i also want to remind president biden,

who said in his address, putin will stop in to ukraine, i will sing you, those who think that putin will stop in ukraine, i will sing you assures me that he will not, and i think that no one in this room should be under any such illusions. i also want to say that president biden said that ukraine can stop putin if we give it the weapons it needs and help, and i used that expression as well. relative to our colleagues in nato. the transatlantic community represents half of the world's economic and military power. we are much stronger than russia. and if we are consistent and ambitious. if we have a security strategy ukraine with everything it needs, free from

self-imposed red lines, we will be able to guarantee that ukraine will defeat russia. this is our strategic goal, i want to, i want to tell you also that we, as the nato parliamentary assembly, strive to help ukraine become a member of nato as soon as possible, and because there will be no long-lasting peace in ukraine without ukraine in nato, but also i i want to say it openly. i want to say that tomorrow the standing committee of the nato parliamentary assembly will meet in tallinn, and i want to recognize and raise the status of ukraine as a candidate country

for the nato parliamentary assembly, offering tomorrow in... in her country an increase in the number of delegates to 12 in the nato parliamentary assembly, and this is exactly the number of delegates that ukraine will have if it becomes a full member of nato. so, colleagues, we need to take this seriously, seriously. which we know that in a few years russia will be able to test nato's commitment under the fifth, and we need, we need to prevent russia's violation, our deterrence,

and we need to provide ukraine with everything that necessary, including long- range missiles. and we are very happy that the ukraine-nato training center will be established in bydgoszcz, in poland, we also want you to know that nato is not only a military alliance, it is an alliance of democracy, which is based on our values ​​and ... as an alliance, we are ready to defend the territory of each of our members, according to the fifth strategy, and as an alliance, we are ready to stand with ukraine until ... victory and this is the expression that i want to propose to the assembly for approval to stand with ukraine until victory, as the president of the nato parliamentary assembly

, i want you to be sure and assure you that i will do everything possible for ukraine to become the 33rd member of nato, and there are still 110 days until the washington summit, and i will participate in him as president. nato parliamentary assembly, and we must do everything possible to bring ukraine closer to nato membership. we need to prepare for the next important steps towards membership. i think we should look for compromises, look for solutions to make the washington summit a success for nato. for the 302 members of the alliance, but also so that ukraine can participate in future summits as a member. thank you very much,

mr. sherba, thank you personally, and your ukraine, for the support that it constantly provides in the european union, in the nato alliance in ukraine, and now i turn to ambassador peifer. tell us realistically what ukraine can expect from the summit? well, first of all, thank you, i am very pleased to be here again at the kyiv security forum, and i want to say that i salute the determination and endurance of the ukrainian people, who is committed to this, opposes this russian war, i... always from california from far away california has always struck me that, and several things in the last few years, one, europe cannot be stable and

secure unless ukraine is stable and secure, and the second, that ukraine will not be stable and safe by itself, and when i say that ukraine should be in nato, what i am saying now is not just about ukraine, i am looking at it from an american point of view. let's not talk about ukraine now. i am talking about ukraine's membership in nato, as an interest of the united states. because the united states got a stable and secure europe, it was in the interests of the united states for 70 years. and this requires a stable ukraine. if russia wins this war, if vladimir putin wins, then a determined kremlin will be much more in favor. for europe, if this continues further and further, this means less and less security and stability for europe, in turn, this means that nato member countries and the west must provide all

the necessary weapons to ukraine in order for it to could defend itself, but apart from that, it is necessary to do everything possible so that ukraine becomes a member of nato, because if ukraine remains alone, then it will be a recipe for instability, because then it will... simply russia will give in to the temptation to completely take it over in the future, and i i have to say that i think it would be simply unrealistic to expect that in 110 days the washington leaders of nato will invite ukraine to join, if, as far as i can tell, the united states, germany, a number of other members of the alliance are not yet ready to take this step . and this step requires a consensus in nato, and if you turn to article five, article five, it says nato will treat an attack

on one as an attack on all. and, if you, and, and this is what worries washington, if ukraine is included in nato, in which the war is being waged, then the united states will be forced. send your troops to protect ukraine. i don't think america is ready for that right now, because it would require a very difficult decision to go to war with russia, and the cost of that risk is hard to calculate. it is much easier to find yourself in a situation where, after this conflict, ukraine will be included because then a difficult decision. will be in moscow, because it will have to decide whether it can attack ukraine if ukraine is in nato, and then the cost

of this difficult decision will be. i think that this is a difficult situation, some have suggested that maybe article five should be settled, some have said that maybe article five will cover only the territory of ukraine that is not occupied, i think there are some problems here with this, and then it would be a very big mistake to blur the article with the fifth, it would not be good for ukraine, it would not be good for other members of the alliance. means that nato members must respond with all their forces, and i want article five to clearly indicate that it must be military forces, so that a potential aggressor understands that if his forces attack nato territory , then the rest of the nato member countries will react in a military way, and here. the issue

of relations between nato and ukraine, perhaps the most difficult issue between now and the actual summit, ambassador herbst and ambassador friedneier participate in the work of a group that is preparing proposals for preparations for the summit, and if ukraine does not receive an invitation to join washington, then nato leaders and president zelensky agree to start. accession negotiations with the aim of inviting ukraine to join the alliance later, and there will be a parallel course, so to speak, when ukraine will conduct face-to-face negotiations with the european union and with nato. i think this proposal does several things, has several advantages. first.

this puts ukraine on the most defined path to membership, secondly, it will be a signal for of ukraine on nato's long-term commitments. the third is that it sends a signal to moscow that you will not survive the event to continue cooperating with ukraine. fourth, it will affect the... the talks between russia and ukraine for the end of the war in this case and what we saw last summer between those countries that wanted to expand, invited by those countries that are not ready for it, it can be certain a compromise between them, it would be a demonstration of the unity of nato and the attitude towards ukraine, and in this way we would have managed to avoid the

differences that we have seen. in vilnius, which were not good for ukraine and not good for nato. thank you, mr. ambassador pfeiffer, and let me ask you a question and go back a little bit to what you said about the threat of erosion of article five, and obviously everyone understands that, but it can also be interpreted as a reluctance to give in. it has been doing just that for 75 years, and now this reluctance to expand the fifth article is being tested in action, it can be interpreted by certain members of the alliance and the kremlin. certainly, as

a certain fluctuation, as a certain weakness, and on which mr. putin would like to make money? in answer, i will say two things: first, when ukraine becomes a member of nato, ukraine must expect that the fifth article fully applies to it, that any future, potential threat to ukrainian territory will be'. chat military response, this is the first, that's why i didn't talk about what the emasculation of the fifth article could mean, it will be bad for ukraine and for those members of the alliance that are closer to russia, the first, the test of the fifth article , we have already seen that there are countries that are ready to stand side by side with ukraine for real, and there are those

who are not ready to send theirs today. military. that's what it's about.