Pentagon chief: No third country eligible to veto Ukraine’s accession to NATO

“No third country has the right to veto accession to NATO. Ukraine, as I have already mentioned, is free to determine its future foreign policy without external interference. I will say that our support for Ukrainian sovereignty is unwavering, and we will continue to work together to ensure that we are in the right place and that Ukraine can defend itself,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said at a joint briefing with Minister of Defense of Ukraine Andriy Taran in Kyiv….

He assured that the United States remained steadfast in its support for Ukraine’s defense reform, which will help meet the criteria for full-fledged NATO membership, in particular, greater Ukraine’s defense capabilities….

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No third country has right to veto NATO membership, Ukraine can determine its future foreign policy independently – US Secretary of Defense

“No third country has the right to veto NATO membership. Ukraine, as I have already noted, has the right to decide its future foreign policy without external interference. I will say that our support for Ukrainian sovereignty is unshakable and we will continue to work together for in order to assure that we are in the right place, and Ukraine can defend itself,” Austin said at a joint briefing with Ukrainian Defense Minister Andriy Taran in Kyiv on Tuesday.