# Major non-NATO ally status for Ukraine > **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou. > > Cite as: "Major non-NATO ally status for Ukraine," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/major-non-nato-ally-proposal-for-ukraine/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia. *John Kiriakou's forecast of how the Russian demand that Ukraine never join NATO can be met without leaving Ukraine unprotected: the designation of major non-NATO ally, already held by Australia, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which he says confers essentially the same rights without the membership.* - **The Russian red line:** That Ukraine can never be a NATO member - **Kiriakou''s answer:** 'But that''s a misnomer, Ukraine doesn''t have to be a member of NATO' - **Existing holders he names:** Australia, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, the UAE - **What he expects Russia to concede:** Fast-tracked European Union membership - **Territory:** Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Crimea retained by Russia - **His overall reading:** 'We''re nearing the end, and the end is not going to be what the United States and Ukraine have hoped for' Asked whether a Russian–Ukrainian settlement would need to be permanent, [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) agreed that it would and set out the shape he expected it to take.[1] ## Territory *"It's going to have to be that the Russians keep Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Crimea, the Russian-speaking areas that they control de facto now. I think they'll end up controlling formally once this is over."*[2] ## The membership question The second Russian condition, he says, is that *"Ukraine cannot ever be a member of NATO."* His response is that the condition costs less than it appears to: *"But that's a misnomer, because Ukraine doesn't have to be a member of NATO. Australia is not a member of NATO. Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, UAE, they're not members of NATO. They're what's called major non-NATO allies. That's an official status."* He expects the United States to concede the point in form and recover it in substance: *"I wouldn't be surprised if the United States agrees with the Russians that no, Ukraine should not be a member of NATO, it will never be a member of NATO. But it could be granted major non-NATO ally status, thus giving it essentially the same rights as a NATO country."*[3][4] ## The Russian concession *"And I think what the Russians will concede is that Ukraine will get fast-track membership in the European Union. And then the EU begins the rebuilding of Ukraine, and that's going to be the end of it."* His summary is that the war is close to its end and that the end will disappoint the side he is on: *"the end is not going to be what the United States and Ukraine have hoped for, but it's going to be enough to put this thing to rest."*[4][5] ## What the status actually buys Kiriakou has described the designation as a real instrument rather than a courtesy, and defined it by what it unlocks. Japan, he noted in April 2024, had been given *"major non-NATO ally status, that's an actual status, with capital letters. Saudi Arabia is a major non-NATO ally. Bahrain is a major non-NATO ally. My guess is the Philippines is going to get it soon."*[6] Asked what it means in practice: *"they have access to some weapons and weapon systems that they otherwise wouldn't have access to. For example the UAE, Australia, Saudi Arabia, they have access to the [F-35](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/f-35-israel-avionics). So we'll give the F-35 to the Japanese as well. And we don't for other countries, in fact [Turkey is a member of NATO and we won't give them the F-35](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/f-35-sale-to-turkey)."*[7] He attaches to it a separate objection about the alliance's spending rule: the two per cent of GDP guideline is met by only *"three or four NATO countries"*, and yet *"we're demanding it, and we're forcing them to spend more money. It's very dangerous."*[8] ## See also - [Ukraine as a proxy war](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/ukraine-proxy-war) - [Russia-Ukraine war origins](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/russia-ukraine-war-origins) - [Volodymyr Zelensky](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/volodymyr-zelensky) - [Vladimir Putin](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/vladimir-putin) ## Sources 1. Charlie Kirk's Story Cracks — Hegseth (2025-12-09), at 26:46. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2Sh1zpgfU&t=1606s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-12-09-dialogue-works-charlie-kirk-s-story-cracks-hegseth/ 2. Charlie Kirk's Story Cracks — Hegseth (2025-12-09), at 27:18. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2Sh1zpgfU&t=1638s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-12-09-dialogue-works-charlie-kirk-s-story-cracks-hegseth/ 3. Charlie Kirk's Story Cracks — Hegseth (2025-12-09), at 27:49. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2Sh1zpgfU&t=1669s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-12-09-dialogue-works-charlie-kirk-s-story-cracks-hegseth/ 4. Charlie Kirk's Story Cracks — Hegseth (2025-12-09), at 28:21. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2Sh1zpgfU&t=1701s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-12-09-dialogue-works-charlie-kirk-s-story-cracks-hegseth/ 5. Charlie Kirk's Story Cracks — Hegseth (2025-12-09), at 28:51. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2Sh1zpgfU&t=1731s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-12-09-dialogue-works-charlie-kirk-s-story-cracks-hegseth/ 6. Iran-Israel Possible Open War (2024-04-18), at 30:05. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXpQfO_oTsQ&t=1805s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-04-18-dr-david-oualaalou-iran-israel-possible-open-war/ 7. Iran-Israel Possible Open War (2024-04-18), at 30:37. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXpQfO_oTsQ&t=1837s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-04-18-dr-david-oualaalou-iran-israel-possible-open-war/ 8. Iran-Israel Possible Open War (2024-04-18), at 31:09. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXpQfO_oTsQ&t=1869s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-04-18-dr-david-oualaalou-iran-israel-possible-open-war/ --- From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/major-non-nato-ally-proposal-for-ukraine/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt