The United States and Russia have blocked Ukraine’s bid to join NATO.
Ukraine’s bid to join NATO has been blocked by the United States and Russia, who are at odds over the annexation of Crimea. In late September 2021, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he was ready to hold a referendum on joining NATO. The move was met with opposition from both the United States and Russia, who are currently in a tense standoff over Crimea. Although Ukraine is not a member of NATO, it has signed an agreement with the alliance allowing for closer cooperation between the two parties.
The Ukraine-NATO relationship dates back to 1997 when Ukraine became part of the Partnership for Peace programme. This program allowed countries to become more closely involved with NATO without actually becoming members of it. Ukraine signed an official partnership agreement with NATO in 2008 which led to increased cooperation between the two parties. By signing this agreement, Ukraine agreed that it would “refrain from seeking membership in other military alliances” while continuing its cooperation with NATO.
