NEW YORK, December 3. /TASS/. NATO member states are unlikely to take a decision on inviting Ukraine to join their ranks at the upcoming foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels, they may need months to reach a consensus, Reuters reported, citing NATO diplomats.

According to their assessments, there is no sign of a consensus among the 32 NATO member states needed to decide on Ukraine's membership. In particular, according to the news agency’s sources, the US administration and Germany believe that now is not the right time for it. A senior NATO diplomat said that "it will take weeks and months to get consensus."

On November 29, Reuters reported that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Sibiga called on NATO to invite the country to become a member state at the December 3-4 ministerial meeting in Brussels, without waiting for the conflict to end.

In September 2022, Ukraine submitted an application to join NATO in an accelerated mode. At the Vilnius summit in July 2023, the alliance said that it would accept Ukraine as an exception without implementing the action plan. At the Washington summit in July 2024, NATO member states promised to provide Ukraine with 40 billion dollars in annual military aid, without mentioning the prospect of accession.