Poroshenko Says Staying Out Of NATO Was 'Criminal'
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said that staying out of the NATO military alliance was a "criminal" policy that his government is ready to reverse.
But Poroshenko said it will be up to a popular vote to decide on membership.
Poroshenko was speaking on September 22 while chairing a meeting of Ukraine's security council.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg was in attendance at the meeting in Kyiv.
NATO officials have said that Ukraine must carry out political, economic, and military reforms before the country can even be considered for membership.
Stoltenberg told the meeting that "Ukraine can rely on NATO" and that "NATO provides Ukraine with political and practical support."
Ukraine has been fighting with separatist rebels in the east since April 2014 in a conflict that has resulted in the deaths of more than 7,900 people.
Kyiv and Western governments accuse Moscow of directly backing the rebels, something the Kremlin denies.
Based on reporting by AP and Interfax
Here is a map of the latest situation in the Donbas combat zone, courtesy of the Ukrainian Defense MInistry (click image to enlarge):
Here's a live feed of Nadia Savhcenko's trial from RFE/RL's Russian Service (natural sound):
Here are some details from our news desk on the Savchenko trial today:
The high-profile trial of Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko is beginning in a Russian court on September 22.
Savchenko is charged with involvement in the murder of two Russian journalists in eastern Ukraine in 2014.
Savchenko denies the charges, and spent more than 80 days on a hunger strike to protest her detention.
Human rights groups and Western governments have joined Kyiv in calling for her release.
Her lawyer, Mark Feygin, tweeted that journalists were being barred from entering the courtroom on September 22 in the southern Russian town of Donetsk close to eastern Ukraine.
Savchenko faces 25 years in jail if found guilty of complicity in the killing of the two journalists and of crossing into Russia illegally.
Savchenko says she was spirited into Russia by the rebels after being captured in a day-long battle in June 2014.
Her defense team says they have proof she was already in captivity at the time of the two reporters' deaths.
The 34-year-old's plight and defiant stance in captivity have made her a national hero in Ukraine.
(Interfax, Twitter, Reuters