NATO and Ukraine have agreed to launch a new format of cooperation “One Country - One Plan” which will embrace all previous developments and consolidate them within a single structure of control and coordination.

"We relaunch the format of cooperation with NATO, making it much more practical and result-oriented. It is not only a matter of signing documents but also of implementing NATO standards felt by military personnel in specific prospect,” Defense Minister of Ukraine Andriy Zahorodniuk told journalists following the visit to NATO Headquarters and talks with NATO defense ministers in Brussels on Friday, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

According to Zahorodniuk, NATO intends to offer the "One Country - One Plan" format to optimize and improve cooperation with all partner countries, and Ukraine will be the first country to accumulate such experience. The main feature of the new format is its specification of the tasks and the timing of their achievement with a clear system of control over the implementation by both Ukraine and NATO.

The Ukrainian minister outlined some of the priorities of such joint work. They include, first and foremost, the transformation of the Armed Forces management system that is already underway; the change in structure of the General Staff and management of the Armed Forces; the revision of the functionalities of governing bodies and their adaptation to the formats compatible with NATO approaches. According to Zahorodniuk, the first results of such work should be achieved by the end of this year as well as next year.

Along with the optimization of the management system, new statutes and guidelines will also be developed based on the NATO Standardization Agreement (STANAG).

The Ukrainian defense minister underscored that all useful forms of cooperation with NATO that have already proven effective, including Trust Funds, targeted bilateral cooperation programs in various fields, achievements in personnel management, military education and training and other areas, will be preserved and advanced.

The differentiating feature of the new approach is that all bilateral cooperation programs with NATO and the Allies will be overseen by the designated experts from both Ukraine and NATO who will work to achieve results in a timely manner.

The Annual National Program under the aegis of Commission Ukraine-NATO will remain the basis of Ukraine-NATO cooperation.

ol