Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna announced the launch of a national system of transition to NATO standards at an online presentation of a study by the New Europe think tank on the implementation of NATO standards in Ukraine.

"A special decision of the National Security and Defense Council is currently being prepared to identify key internal measures needed to accelerate Ukraine's accession to NATO. One of its key elements will be the formation of a national system of transition to NATO standards," said the Deputy Prime Minister.

The national system of transition to the standards of the North Atlantic Alliance aims to ensure the systematic character and consistency of work of various bodies in the direction of adaptation to NATO standards. It is a matter of uniting into a single system both the transformation inside the Armed Forces and the entire security and defense sector, in particular the protection of information with limited access, the functioning of the secret services.

The transition to NATO standards will allow to achieve the following:

• interoperability of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the armies of NATO member states for joint action during crisis management operations, as part of the NATO Response Force and multinational exercises;
• functional interoperability, in particular in the areas of defense planning, defense resource management, personnel management, administrative activities.

The New Europe Centre’s study notes that as of January 2021, Ukraine has implemented 292 or about 19% of the Alliance's standardization agreements and guidelines. At the same time, a third of them - about 100 - have been introduced in the last year and a half.

"The dynamics we are already demonstrating in the transformation of the security and defense sector and the implementation of NATO standards in the Armed Forces over the past year and a half allow us to set ambitious goals in the Euro-Atlantic direction," added Olha Stefanishyna.

At the same time, the Deputy Prime Minister stressed that in addition to the transition of the security and defense sector to NATO standards, active work is underway to introduce the principles and policies of the Alliance in Ukraine: "For example, we are working on building a national sustainability system, having already adopted the Concept of Ensuring National Sustainability at the last meeting of the Commission for the Coordination of Euro-Atlantic Integration. Ukraine's systematic transition to NATO standards, principles and policies is among the Government's top priorities."

Background

There are about 2,000 NATO standards on military interoperability, which are enshrined in about 1,200 Alliance’s standardization agreements and guidelines. The transition to NATO standards for each NATO member state is voluntary, depending on their relevance to each individual country.