Biden, German chancellor discuss preparations for NATO Summit

By Betul Yuruk

NEW YORK (AA) - US President Joe Biden spoke with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday to review preparations for the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on July 11-12.

The White House said that Biden and Scholz discussed a range of issues that leaders will consider at the summit, including ways to further strengthen the military alliance.

Scholz expressed opposition earlier Tuesday to Ukraine’s plans to immediately join NATO, making it clear that ''nobody can become a member of a defensive alliance during a war.''

One of the criteria for NATO membership is that ''there are no open border conflicts,'' he said.

Ukraine officially submitted its application for NATO membership last September, following Russia's annexation of four Ukrainian regions.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Kyiv needs “a very clear and understandable signal at the Vilnius summit that Ukraine can become an equal member of NATO after the war."