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The President opened the NATO Public Forum

President of the Republic of Lithuania

July 11, 2023

President Gitanas Nausėda opened the NATO Public Forum on Tuesday morning.

The President expressed his delight to welcome the NATO Public Forum in Vilnius, the historical capital of Lithuania, celebrating its 700th anniversary this year. At the same time, the President underlined that the NATO Summit is taking place in a city just a few hundred kilometers away from Russia's brutal and devastating war in Ukraine.

"We must take decisions on Ukraine. For 15 years we have been repeating that one day Ukraine will join NATO. But we never took any tangible step forward on this path. At the same time, Russia did not hesitate to take aggressive initiatives: it invaded Georgia in 2008, illegally annexed Crimea, destabilized Donbas, and launched a brutal military invasion of Ukraine. It is time to change the paradigm. There will be no security and stability in Europe unless Ukraine's future is clearly defined," the President said.

According to Gitanas Nausėda, we owe Ukraine a clear pathway to NATO membership. "Only Article 5 can provide real security guarantees that will deter Russia from any future aggression," the President said. "Tomorrow we will hold the first meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council - a significant upgrade of our practical and political partnership."

The President stressed that Russia poses the greatest direct and long-term threat to the security of the Alliance. Therefore, deterring Russia remains a key task for the foreseeable future. "I am glad that NATO is taking steps to strengthen deterrence and forward defense. All Allies stand firm and united in their collective defense commitments. The Alliance is already making history in Vilnius by approving the new generation defense plans," the President said.

According to the Lithuanian leader, a more serious approach to defense investment is needed: 2 percent of GDP for defense must become a minimum - the floor, not the ceiling.

In his opening speech at the NATO Public Forum, the President reviewed the complexity of the regional and global security environment, including the Indo-Pacific region, and highlighted the importance of energy, cyber and technological security, innovation, and hybrid threats.

The President's Communication Group