Poroshenko to Present Strategic Defense Bulletin at NATO Warsaw Summit

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will present his country’s strategic defense bulletin at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) summit in Poland this summer, the Ukrainian defense minister said Saturday.

KIEV (Sputnik) – The July 8-9 Warsaw Summit is scheduled to host the second NATO-Ukraine Commission, where Kiev is expected to submit an action plan on reforming the Ukrainian Defense Ministry to comply with NATO standards. On Friday, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine approved the strategic defense bulletin to reform the national armed forces by 2020 in its membership bid.

"I think this document [defense bulletin] will be presented by the president of Ukraine at the Warsaw summit," Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak told reporters in an interview broadcast by the 112 Ukraine news channel.

Poltorak said prominent defense firms and NATO advisers worked on the draft document, which includes reform plans to conform to the military alliance’s standards. The minister highlighted the importance of civilian control over the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including through with appointment of a civilian to the defense ministerial post.

"We must be prepared to answer to all positions, principles the alliance’s armies are built on. I am confident that we will be able to do that by the end of 2020," the minister noted.

Ukraine suspended its non-aligned status in December 2014 and confirmed its intention to join NATO in 2020. The alliance's officials have repeatedly stressed that Kiev will have to implement a wide range of reforms before joining the military bloc.

In March, Ukraine and NATO agreed on a set of reforms that the Ukrainian Armed Forces must undergo to comply with the alliance's standards, following a roadmap on defense-technical cooperation signed in December 2015.