KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s parliament has voted to abandon the country’s nonaligned status, a move that could be a step toward seeking membership in NATO.
Although Ukraine had pursued NATO membership several years ago, it declared itself a non-bloc country after Russia-friendly Viktor Yanukovych became president in 2010. Yanukovych fled the country in February after months of street protests that exploded into violence, and was replaced by Western-leaning Petro Poroshenko in May.
Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine and its support for a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine appear partly rooted in fears that the Western military alliance could …read more
Source: KXAN
