NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg made clear today that Ukraine will “one day” become a member of NATO. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Romania with Stoltenberg and other NATO counterparts to drum up support for Ukraine. The renewed call for support is to defeat Russia as it bombards energy infrastructure.

Stoltenberg was speaking out about new members of NATO, North Macedonia and Montenegro, and the membership of Finland and Sweden that is coming soon. It is the same vow that NATO leaders made in Bucharest in 2008. Deja vu – Stoltenberg was speaking in the Palace of the Parliament where foreign ministers met in 2008 and agreed that Ukraine and Georgia would join NATO one day. This was at the urging of then-President George W. Bush.

“NATO’s door is open,” Stoltenberg said. “Russia does not have a veto” on countries joining, he said in reference to the recent entry of North Macedonia and Montenegro into the security alliance. He said that Russian President Vladimir Putin “will get Finland and Sweden as NATO members” soon. The Nordic neighbors applied for membership in April, concerned that Russia might target them next.

“We stand by that, too, on membership for Ukraine,” the former Norwegian prime minister said.

Some blame Putin’s invasion into Ukraine in February on it’s future membership in NATO but Stoltenberg disagrees with that opinion.

“President Putin cannot deny sovereign nations to make their own sovereign decisions that are not a threat to Russia,” he said. “I think what he’s afraid of is democracy and freedom, and that’s the main challenge for him.”

Regardless if a pending membership in NATO had anything to do with Putin’s invasion or not, Putin’s war is now slowing down Ukraine’s path to membership. Putin annexed the Crimean Peninsula. Russian troops and pro-Moscow separatists hold parts of the south and east. Ukraine’s borders are not clear now. NATO, now 30 members strong, believes that first the focus must be on defeating Russia before moving ahead on a membership that may divide some members.

“We are in the midst of a war and therefore we should do nothing that can undermine the unity of allies to provide military, humanitarian, financial support to Ukraine, because we must prevent President Putin from winning,” he said.

In other words, Ukraine’s membership into NATO isn’t going to be fast-tracked, despite President Zelensky’s wishes.

The NATO meeting in Romania will last for two days. While there, NATO members are expected to make new pledges of non-lethal support to Ukraine, such as fuel, generators, medical supplies, and drone-jamming devices. Blinken will announce substantial U.S. aid for Ukraine’s energy grid. Russia has attacked Ukraine’s energy grid since early October. Stoltenberg reminded members that every country is paying a price but not the same as the price that Ukrainians pay.

“We are all paying a price for Russia’s war against Ukraine. But the price we pay is in money,” Stoltenberg said Tuesday, “while the price Ukrainians pay is a price paid in blood.”

Individual member countries will likely announce they will provide new supplies of military equipment for Ukraine. Most likely this will be air defense systems that are desperately needed. NATO, as an organization, will avoid making such an announcement, though, to avoid being dragged into a potential war with Russia, which could involve nuclear arms. The foreign ministers will meet with their Ukrainian counterpart on Tuesday. The foreign ministers of Finland and Sweden will be allowed to join in the talks. NATO is pushing for their memberships to be finalized but Turkey and Hungary are holding out on ratifying their applications. All of the other 28 members have already ratified their applications.

Also on the agenda is how best to support NATO partners who face Russian pressure, such as Bosnia, Georgia, and Moldova.

Meanwhile, Monday the Biden administration notified Congress that it has approved a possible $323M arms sale to Finland. The State Department released a statement that the potential deal involves 40 tactical missiles and 48 Joint Standoff Weapons, made by Raytheon, along with the accompanying equipment. Training and support is also included.

The State Department said the proposed sale “will support the foreign policy and national security of the United States by improving the security of a trusted partner, which is an important force for political stability and economic progress in Europe.”

The notice added that it “is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist Finland in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability.”

Finland intends to use the weapons for its fighter aircraft fleet and improve its air-to-air and air-to-surface weapons capabilities, according to the release.

The Biden administration is approving high-value weapons sales to NATO partners to help bolster NATO’s defense capabilities along the alliance’s eastern flank in order to help them ward off Russian aggression.