German Cabinet Denies Reports On Scholz Proposing To Formalize Kiev's Non-Entry Into NATO

Berlin denied reports that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz allegedly made it clear during a visit to Moscow that Germany wants to formalize Ukraine's non-entry into NATO, but it still believes that Kiev has the right to make decisions on this issue independently, Steffen Hebestreit, a spokesman for the German cabinet, said on Wednesday

BERLIN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th February, 2022) Berlin denied reports that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz allegedly made it clear during a visit to Moscow that Germany wants to formalize Ukraine's non-entry into NATO, but it still believes that Kiev has the right to make decisions on this issue independently, Steffen Hebestreit, a spokesman for the German cabinet, said on Wednesday.

"No, I can say for sure that the chancellor has never said that and never meant it. He made it clear both at a press conference in Kiev, in the Kremlin, and then at another press conference in a Moscow hotel that Ukraine's admission to NATO is not on the agenda at the moment and will not be on the agenda in the nearest future," Hebestreit said at a briefing, answering the question whether the chancellor meant formalizing Ukraine's non-entry into NATO.

The official went on to say that Ukraine can decide whether it wants to join the NATO or not, and whether the country will be able to meet the necessary conditions for accession into the organization.