July 11, 2024 — Washington, DC
American Jewish Committee (AJC) CEO Ted Deutch issued the following statement welcoming the NATO Summit declaration on Ukraine:
“The NATO Summit represents a watershed moment in the fight for democracy and freedom. AJC applauds NATO’s vital and ongoing show of solidarity with Ukraine and its commitment to provide Ukraine with continued military support and security assistance in the face of Russian aggression. The decision by NATO’s secretary general to send a senior representative to Ukraine also sends a strong message.
“While the Summit declaration unequivocally states that Ukraine’s future is in NATO, we recognize that extending NATO membership to Ukraine will be a complex process. However, AJC is encouraged that the alliance has set forth a mechanism for Ukraine’s accession, building on the commitment expressed at the Vilnius Summit in July 2023. We commend the alliance’s resolve to provide Ukraine an ‘irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership.’
"NATO was created 75 years ago to provide security against the Soviet Union. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the alliance has been called upon to answer new threats – none more urgent than the threat posed by a revanchist Russian regime with no regard for humanity or sovereign borders. NATO exists to defend freedom, the very freedom it should stand with Ukraine to protect.
“Following the war’s end, setting that embattled nation on NATO’s eastern flank on the path to membership in the most important defense alliance in world history will be the logical next step.
“This is an issue that American Jewish Committee cares about deeply. We were the first Jewish organization to support the restoration of Ukrainian independence in 1991 after the fall of the Soviet Union and have remained steadfastly committed to Ukraine’s sovereignty.
“AJC argued for the inclusion of Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania, as well as the Baltic states of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania in NATO. Today, we unequivocally support Ukraine becoming a member of NATO.”
AJC is the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people. With headquarters in New York, 25 regional offices across the United States, 15 overseas posts, as well as partnerships with 38 Jewish community organizations worldwide, AJC’s mission is to enhance the well-being of the Jewish people and Israel and to advance human rights and democratic values in the United States and around the world. For more, please visit www.ajc.org.
