NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer refuses to talk about reasons why the Ukraine’s bid to join NATO MAP was put off to December.

According to an UNIAN correspondent, he claimed this today at a joint press conference with President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko in Bucharest, after the session of Ukraine-NATO Commission.

Видео дня

“I’m not going to discuss internal issues in public”, J.Scheffer said.

At the same time, he noted that the results of the Alliance summit are a very powerful signal for Ukraine. He also denied the information that as if the Russian Federation had blocked Ukraine’s joining the MAP.

According to J.Scheffer, the final communiqué of the Summit clearly sets out that all the Alliance countries agree that Ukraine will become a NATO member one day.

He again assured Ukraine it would be set on a path to NATO membership, saying: "This is a signal from NATO that we value this relationship."

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer also told reporters at the NATO summit in Bucharest on Friday that the Western military alliance will help Ukraine in any way it can to make reforms.

NATO allies decided to delay putting the two countries on track to join. The U.S. has been pressing hard to bring them aboard, but France and Germany fear it would worsen already tense relations with Russia.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko says his country understands the challenges that delayed its membership bid, and that it`s devoted to democratic and European values.