The Ukrainian defense minister told his NATO counterparts on Thursday that Ukraine was willing to continue constructive cooperation with the Western military alliance, RIA Novosti reported.
"The Ukrainian president has stressed that Ukraine remains NATO's stable and reliable partner," Mykhaylo Yezhel said at a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council in Brussels.
He said a new law pending in parliament on the basic principles of Ukraine's domestic and foreign policy prioritizes Kiev's relations with Washington, Brussels and Moscow, as well as the continuation of constructive cooperation with NATO and other international and regional organizations in the interest of peace and stability.
Yezhel also said the country's military reform was moving along and that his ministry was looking to closer cooperation with NATO in achieving interoperability between its Armed Forces and the armed forces of its NATO partners.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said earlier in the day NATO counts on a partnership with Ukraine and that the door for membership remains open.