US President Donald Trump said this week that he was seriously considering withdrawing his country from the alliance. This declaration caused concern among NATO member states such as Poland.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that such a scenario “looks like Putin's dream plan.”
However, the head of the Ukrainian mission to NATO, Alona Hetmanchuk, reacted to these reports with surprising optimism. In an interview with POLITICO, she emphasized that the current turmoil may become an impulse for the revival of the alliance.
— Instead of talking about the collapse of NATO, I prefer to talk about its reinvention, argues Hetmanczuk.
In this game, Ukraine no longer wants to be just a spectator – it is increasingly making it clear that it has its own cards to play.
Hetmanchuk argued that – paradoxically – the current chaos may open up new opportunities for Ukraine to become closer to NATO.
In her opinion, such a development would help make the alliance “much more effective, dangerous, innovative and capable of countering the Russian threat.”
The head of the Ukrainian mission also rejected the description of NATO as a “paper tiger” used by Trump, suggesting that the alliance is unable to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin. She pointed out that although the Kremlin has been trying to weaken NATO for decades, it has never dared to directly attack any of the member states.
She also emphasized that Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty – which obliges the alliance to jointly defend any member attacked – remains a model example of security guarantees. In her opinion, the EU's mutual defense clause is not comparable to it in this respect.
Ambition versus reality
Ukraine has long been striving to join NATO, counting on such military security. These ambitions only strengthened after the Russian invasion of its territory. But Trump adamantly opposes Kiev's admission to the alliance, and last year NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stressed that Ukraine could not become a member without the consent of all current member states.
Mark Rutte and Donald Trump, Washington, October 22, 2025.Alex Wong / Staff / Getty Images
Since NATO membership is currently “politically out of reach”, Hetmanchuk noted that Kiev is seeking a solution “like Article 5”, which could be treated as a guarantee of Ukraine's sovereignty.
At the same time, Ukraine's desire to join NATO did not obscure the visible cracks within the alliance.
Kiev's disappointed expectations
Hetmanchuk admitted that Ukraine's trust had been damaged, in part because of NATO's “behavior in the early years of the war, when it deliberately distanced itself from key processes related to providing Ukraine with the support it most needed – including the supply of lethal weapons.”
After Trump's re-election and Washington's decision to limit support for Kiev, NATO began to play a more active role in the defense of Ukraine. Currently, the alliance coordinates over 80 percent. all military aid to this country.
Although the majority of Ukrainians still support NATO membership, support for the alliance has been systematically declining since 2022, when a record 89 percent citizens declared support for integration. In the following years, the pressure of war meant that Ukraine gained extensive defense experience and developed its own effective weapons systems.
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Experience that NATO lacks
Hetmanchuk emphasized that Kiev's position today is significantly different from that in the first months of the war – Ukraine is no longer just a recipient of support, but a country that can actually co-create NATO's potential.
She pointed out that thanks to the combat experience gained, the dynamic development of its own military technologies and the ability to quickly adapt on the battlefield, Ukraine today has unique know-how that no other country in the alliance has.
Even without being a NATO member, we are the only country that already implements the Alliance's Strategic Concept in practice
– she said, referring to the document defining NATO's key goals and clearly identifying the opponents whose aggressive actions must be stopped.
She added that Ukraine is currently a key partner of the alliance in “confronting its most direct and serious threat, which has been identified as Russia.”
I’m Ashley Davis as an editor, I’m committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity and accuracy in every piece we publish. My work is driven by curiosity, a passion for truth, and a belief that journalism plays a crucial role in shaping public discourse. I strive to tell stories that not only inform but also inspire action and conversation.
