The first sitting of the NATO-Ukraine Inter-Parliamentary Council headed by B.Tarasiuk, Chairman of the Committee on European Integration, and J.Cordy, Canadian parliament member, was held at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels on 5 May 2008. It was attended by the People´s Deputies of Ukraine (the representatives of opposition and coalition), members of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (parliament members from Great Britain, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, and Lithuania), high-ranking officials of the NATO as an international organization.
The participants of the sitting discussed different aspects of cooperation between Ukraine and the NATO, especially in political, military and information sectors; and highly appraised results of such cooperation for the last years. The NATO representatives highly evaluated Ukraine´s contribution to the peacemaking activity of the Organization, and stated that Ukraine is the only partner of the NATO that participates in all current operations.
Ukrainian delegation unanimously underscored invariability of its strategic, legislatively defined course at accession to the NATO. Opinions of the representatives of opposition and coalition differ only in the rate and means of achievement of the said aim.
The next sitting of the NATO-Ukraine Inter-Parliamentary Council will be held in Ukraine in autumn 2008.