NATO Foreign Ministers meeting to conclude

The NATO foreign ministers meeting concludes today at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

This is the second meeting of the NATO foreign ministers this year, and has a primary focus on the Russia-Ukraine War. This meeting is NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s first time in charge of a foreign ministers meeting, and his leadership will be tested by overseeing such a contentious topic for NATO. Additionally, Ukraine has recently stepped up its appeals for NATO membership, urging NATO to extend a formal invitation to join the alliance last week.

Ukrainian officials, view an invitation as a critical step in President Zelensky’s “victory plan,” which they believe would end the “hot stage” of the conflict with Russia, allowing both sides to begin negotiations regarding return of territory. This will certainly be difficult, as extending an invitation for membership requires the consent of all thirty-two NATO member states. In addition, it appears that there is no consensus among the members states, especially as they wait for United States President-elect Donald Trump’s stance on the war. Secretary-General Rutte met with Mr. Trump late last month to discuss continued support for NATO and Ukraine, but President Biden’s recent upscaled $725 million weapons package to Ukraine shows that the current administration is not optimistic about the next administration’s support for Ukraine. While it is unlikely is that Ukraine will receive its coveted invitation to NATO following this meeting, the recent shift towards negotiation with Russia is alarming as it may signal weakness within Ukraine and could force NATO to act sooner than expected to end this conflict.