President Hollande Opposes Ukraine’s NATO Membership

President Francois Hollande underscored that Ukraine's possible NATO membership would be undesirable for France.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – France does not support the idea of Ukraine joining NATO, French President Francois Hollande said Thursday.

“For France, Ukraine’s NATO membership would be undesirable,” Hollande told reporters.

Ukraine's non-aligned status was secured by a law signed by then-president Viktor Yanukovych in 2010. The law stipulated that Ukraine would not seek to join any military-political alliances. Petro Poroshenko, the current President of Ukraine, has stated that his predecessor's decision was a strategic mistake.

In December, 2014 Ukraine cancelled its non-aligned status and resumed its course to join NATO. The country will have to finalize its decision to join NATO in the next five to six years, Poroshenko said.

Ukraine's NATO bid has prompted a mixed reaction from the alliance, with the majority of NATO officials saying the country was not ready to join the bloc, and needed deep reforms before pursuing NATO membership.

A senior US official told RIA Novosti in December that Ukraine's NATO membership is not being considered by the alliance.