ISTANBUL 

Only Kyiv’s invitation to NATO will give “real chances” to the world and Europe “to return to true security,” the head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office said. 

Speaking at a meeting of the Yalta European Strategy (YES) forum in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, Andriy Yermak said that the failure to invite Ukraine to NATO’s Washington summit later this year could trigger a new escalation in the Middle East and in other regions, according to a Ukrainian presidency statement late Saturday.

The statement said that Yermak expressed Kyiv’s gratitude to all countries that have united around its support since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war.

"Our struggle and this support have shown that the majority of people in the world are on the side of good. We see that this support remains at a very high level, and it is important to maintain it," Yermak was quoted saying.

The statement further said that one of the main topics discussed during the meeting was the prospect of Ukraine receiving an invitation to begin talks on the country’s NATO membership at the NATO summit in Washington.

According to Yermak, it said, arguments suggesting “Ukraine's accession to NATO could lead to further escalation look strange to Ukrainians, as our country has been living in the conditions of the dreadful full-scale war for two years already.”

The forum, which marked the second year since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, was attended by former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as well as public intellectuals, politicians, experts, and activists, the statement added.