Zaluzhnyi: Ukraine will never join NATO — alliance stuck in WWII doctrines

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NATO’s reliance on the “doctrines of World War II” and its slow adaptation to new forms of warfare make it unlikely Ukraine will ever join the alliance, said Kyiv’s Ambassador to the U.K. and former Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi.

“For 12 years, I must have personally been working to ensure that we mastered NATO standards, and every year I listened to tales that we were about to join NATO. Unfortunately, we will never join it,” Zaluzhnyi privately told Ukrainian ambassadors in Kyiv on Monday, according to Ukrainian media.

Although “Ukraine needs technologies that are still available in NATO countries today,” like defenses against ballistic missiles, he said, “it is impossible to join an organization that possesses the doctrines of World War II with the level of development that exists in the armed forces of Ukraine.”

Russia has made deep changes to its forces under pressure from the war, and many politicians and intelligence officials worry it could be ready to attack a NATO country by the end of the decade.

Zaluzhnyi’s unusual rebuke underscores a growing change in the alliance’s relationship with Ukraine. The country has shifted from relying on European military support in the early years of the war to becoming one the continent’s most powerful and technologically advanced militaries — far ahead of Western forces in the mass production of drones, missiles and other key systems.

“Ukraine contributes to transatlantic security,” said NATO’s 32 leaders in a joint declaration at the alliance’s Ankara summit last month. In recent military exercises where NATO has invited Ukrainian troops to participate, allied forces have repeatedly been surprised by their tactics and drone use.

The comments are also notable given Zaluzhnyi’s widely rumored political ambitions. He was replaced as Ukraine’s top commander by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2024.

“Most likely, NATO will remain in the same form as it is, and will spend 12 years, like Ukraine, transitioning to the standards that need to be achieved in order to be at least half the level of the Russian Federation,” said the retired general.

Zaluzhnyi’s remarks also reflect an enduring Ukrainian frustration with the alliance for stalling its application to join despite officially floating the prospect of eventual membership in 2023. The U.S. and other allies remain opposed.

As a result, Zaluzhnyi said, Ukraine would instead opt to “be tied to blocs and alliances that will probably be formed,” citing the Joint Expeditionary Force — a 10-nation U.K.-led grouping of mainly Nordic and Baltic countries established in 2014 and designed to complement NATO.

“Most likely, we will talk about a European military security bloc,” added Zaluzhnyi.

NATO declined to comment, referring POLITICO to remarks made by alliance Secretary-General Mark Rutte in June, who reiterated the “irreversible path of Ukraine into NATO.”

Zaluzhnyi and Ukraine’s mission to NATO didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Veronika Melkozerova contributed reporting from Kyiv.