On May 14, 2025, the Italian news agency ANSA reported that the United States opposed the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the NATO summit scheduled for June 24-25 in The Hague. Citing diplomatic sources in the alliance, the agency noted that Washington's decision had left most allies perplexed.

"Almost all NATO members expressed surprise at this position," ANSA quotes an unnamed source as saying.

The summit in The Hague, as reported by the Dutch Foreign Ministry, will bring together about 45 heads of state and government, as well as 6 delegates. According to ANSA, invitations have already been sent to four partner countries from Asia - Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, but the question of Ukraine's participation remains open. A possible compromise being discussed is holding the NATO-Ukraine Council at the level of foreign and defense ministers, so as not to exclude Kyiv completely.

The US decision is linked to the position of the Donald Trump administration, which took office in January 2025. Trump has repeatedly expressed skepticism about NATO's involvement in the Ukrainian conflict, linking Kyiv's desire for membership in the alliance with the continuation of hostilities. In an interview with Fox News on May 10, he said that "Ukraine should not count on automatic membership" until negotiations with Russia are completed. This statement echoes his proposal to recognize Crimea as Russian within the framework of a peace agreement, as reported by RBC-Ukraine.

The allies’ confusion is explained by the fact that NATO has significantly expanded its support for Ukraine since 2022, including arms supplies, military training, and aid coordination. As the BBC notes, at the Vilnius summit in 2023, Zelensky criticized the alliance for the lack of a clear “road map” for accession, which caused tensions with the United States. Washington’s current position, according to Reuters, may be connected with a desire to avoid escalation before the talks in Istanbul on May 15, where Zelensky and possibly Russian representatives will discuss a ceasefire.