On December 18, a meeting of the NATO – Ukraine Commission at the level of Ambassadors was held in Brussels. The meeting was dedicated to the assessment of the implementation of the Annual National Program (ANP) under the auspices of the NATO-Ukraine Commission for 2018, and was chaired by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. The Ukrainian delegation was headed by Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.

Representatives of NATO member states highly appreciated the implementation of the Annual National Program-2018 and commended the introduction of new approaches for shaping ANP-2019.

The progress of key reforms in Ukraine was also noted.

Representatives of NATO member countries assured Ukraine of their further political and practical support of towards obtaining NATO membership.

Considerable attention was paid to the security situation in Ukraine, the aggressive actions of the Russian Federation in the waters of the Azov and Black Seas, the need to restore freedom of navigation in the Azov region and immediate release of Ukrainian sailors from Russian captivity and treturn of ships captured by Russia.

The NATO Secretary General and members states condemned  Russia’s aggressive actions against Ukraine and violations of international law in the Kerch Strait and reaffirmed their support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.