Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has proposed extending NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense protection to Ukraine—without making the country a full member of the alliance, reports the Financial Times on March 6.
Meloni argues that this approach would provide “stable, lasting, and effective security” for Ukraine while avoiding the diplomatic and military complications of full NATO integration.
“Extending the same coverage that NATO countries have to Ukraine would certainly be much more effective, while being something different from NATO membership,” Meloni stated.
Her government clarified that while Ukraine would not be a NATO member, it would still benefit from collective defense protections—meaning an attack on Ukraine could trigger a NATO response, similar to how the alliance defends its own members.
No Italian Troops on the Ground
Meloni also rejected the idea of deploying European troops to enforce a ceasefire in Ukraine, calling it “the most complex solution.” She emphasized that Italy would not commit soldiers to such an effort.
Her remarks come as NATO allies debate new security guarantees for Ukraine, with U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly considering changes to the U.S. role in NATO, including conditioning military support on alliance members meeting higher defense spending thresholds.
