By RIA Novosti
Bucharest : The NATO Bucharest summit resumed on Thursday morning with little chance of the former Soviet republics of Georgia and Ukraine being invited to join the alliance’s Membership Action Plan (MAP).
“I would be happy to be proved wrong, but I do not expect MAP for Georgia and Ukraine,” NATO spokesman James Appathurai said on Wednesday night.
For countries to join MAP, a precursor to membership in the military alliance, all 26 allies must give their approval. However, concerns voiced by France and Germany that bringing Russia’s neighbors into the alliance would unnecessarily provoke Moscow seem to have won the day.
Berlin and Paris also pointed out that popular support for NATO membership in Ukraine was below 30% at best, and that Georgia was not in full control of its entire territory due to so-called frozen conflicts in its breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, both of which have recently appealed to Russia for recognition.
Appathurai played down speculation that Moscow, which is not a NATO member, had effectively vetoed Georgia and Ukraine’s bids. However, the reality would seem to be that aggressive rhetoric by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has threatened to retarget Russian missiles at Kiev should Ukraine join the alliance, had proven enough to at least postpone a NATO MAP offer.
Putin will be arriving in Bucharest later today to attend the summit as a guest.
A Russian deputy foreign minister also said before the summit: “Ukraine’s accession to NATO will cause a deep crisis in Russian-Ukrainian relations that will affect pan-European security. Therefore, the West must also make a choice as to what kind of relationship with Russia is in its interests.”
U.S. President George Bush had campaigned strongly for MAP for Ukraine and Georgia, visiting Kiev on the eve of the Bucharest summit for talks with Ukraine’s president, Viktor Yushchenko.
“My country’s position is clear – NATO should welcome Georgia and Ukraine into the Membership Action Plan,” Bush said.
He also looked to assuage Russia’s fear of NATO’s possible eastward expansion, saying, “The Cold War is over. Russia is not our enemy. We are looking to a new security relationship with Russia.”
As well as NATO’s ambitions for expansion, Moscow has also recently been angered by the West’s recognition of Kosovo’s declaration of independence from Serbia and U.S. plans for a missile shield in Central Europe.
NATO is now expected to discuss ways to maintain contact with Georgia and Ukraine and to encourage them to continue military and political reforms. It may also offer them a plan for later membership.
Albania and Croatia were expected to be offered membership of NATO at the Bucharest summit. However, in another blow for expansion, there seemed to be little prospect that Macedonia would be invited to enter the alliance due to Greek demands that the former Yugoslav republic change its name. Macedonia is also the name of a large northern Greek territory, and the birthplace of Alexander the Grea