NATO Leadership To Visit Ukraine In Show Of ‘Support’

NATO’s leadership will visit Ukraine for two days on October 30-31 in a show of support for the nation’s sovereignty and the ongoing reform process, said Oleksandr Vinnikov, the head of Ukraine’s NATO Liaison Office.

Speaking at a NATO-related event in Kyiv on October 21, Vinnikov said the NATO Council delegation will be headed by Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and will include visits to Kyiv and Odesa.

The purpose of the high-level visit is to “send a solid signal of support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, with particular attention paid to the Black Sea, and also of support to the process of reform,” UNIAN reported from the event.

During the delegation’s visit to Odesa, joint events will be held with the Ukrainian Navy and the Odesa Maritime Academy National University and will include NATO warships calling at the city’s Black Sea port.

Deepening “a positive dialogue” with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, “the new government, and new parliament,” is also a stated goal of the trip, according to Vinnikov.

Zelenskiy will also participate in a session of the Ukraine-NATO Commission, the decision-making body responsible for fostering relations with the alliance and directing cooperation.

Separately, meetings are scheduled with members of civil society on a number of issues, including the situation with the Crimean Tatars in Russia-annexed Crimea, and gender equality in defense and security, Vinnikov said.

Based on reporting by Interfax, UNIAN, Hromadske, and Ukrinform