Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyj believes that a NATO invitation would be an important part of his so-called victory plan in the war against Russia.
But Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz says that he cannot see how the country can become a member as long as the war is ongoing.
It is important to understand that a country that is at war absolutely cannot become a member of NATO, he says in an interview with the TV channel ZDF.
Everyone knows that, there is no disagreement on the issue.
Scholz continued by stating that it normally "goes pretty fast" from invitation to membership in the defense alliance.
In the interview with the German public service company, Scholz says that NATO has discussed a Ukrainian membership in the long term, both during the summit in Vilnius last year and in Washington last summer.
But beyond that, I do not think there are reasons for a new decision.
Zelenskyj, who visited Berlin last week, said on Tuesday that it would probably require a green light from the USA to overcome the German hesitation.