The co-chairs of the Ukraine-NATO Inter-Parliamentary Council have called on the governments of NATO member states to provide assistance to Ukraine in its aspiration for maximum rapprochement with the alliance and consider full implementation of the Minsk agreements through the strengthening of the Normandy format as an optimal solution for the occupied part of Donbas.

"We call on the governments of the member states to provide assistance to Ukraine and to increase their support for Kyiv efforts aimed at ensuring maximum institutional rapprochement with NATO," reads a statement by the co-chairs of the Ukraine-NATO Inter-Parliamentary Council, Verkhovna Rada First Deputy Speaker Iryna Gerashchenko and a NATO Parliamentary Assembly member, Canadian Senator Raynell Andreychuk, which was posted by Head of the Permanent Delegation of the Verkhovna Rada to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Iryna Friz on her Facebook page on Tuesday, November 28.

The statement also calls on the Ukrainian authorities "to make full use of the potential of the Annual National Programs and the Comprehensive Assistance Package, maintain the consistency and pace of reforms, and focus on the implementation of agreed priorities." At the same time, the key task is the strengthening of the rule of law and the fight against corruption.

The signatories of the statement recalled that the Verkhovna Rada had introduced amendments to national legislation according to which Ukraine's gaining membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was recognized as one of the key priorities of its foreign policy.

"This is a goal that, according to social polls, is supported by a large majority of the Ukrainian population. Ukraine's policy is now focused on achieving the standards necessary to obtain membership of NATO," the document says.

As part of this meeting, the parties reaffirmed their commitment to support Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration through inter-parliamentary cooperation. Moreover, the Annual National Programs and the Comprehensive Assistance Package are not limited to the sphere of security and defense, but also cover the political, economic and legal framework necessary to ensure the irreversible and stable nature of the reform of the Ukrainian defense and security sector.

"In this context, Ukraine-NATO cooperation is aimed at supporting Ukraine's reform efforts, as well as the goals of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU," Gerashchenko and Andreychuk said.

"Today we once again stressed that we condemn the illegal occupation of Crimea by Russia and its direct support for members of illegal armed groups operating in the region, as well as the use of cyber and information warfare and other destabilizing actions. We emphasize our firm support for the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine," the statement says.

At the same time, the best solution for the occupied part of Donbas, according to the signatories of the statement, is the full implementation of the Minsk agreements by strengthening the Normandy format and other mechanisms.

"We call for the immediate restoration of the ceasefire, an end to threats to the OSCE monitoring mission, and for speedy progress to be achieved in the release of hostages and prisoners who are illegally detained in Russia and in the occupied territory," the document says.

As reported, a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Inter-Parliamentary Council was held in Brussels on November 28.