Ukraine’s involvement in NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) intel-sharing cyberdefense center has been characterized by Russia’s ambassador to Estonia to blackmail.
CCDCOE is a NATO-accredited cyberdefense hub that member countries utilize for research, training, and exercises in areas such as technology, strategy, operations, and law.
Although Ukraine’s acceptance as a contributing participant does not make it a NATO member, it will most certainly strengthen collaboration and allow it to access and share NATO countries’ cyber-expertise.
“Blackmail on political, economic, ideological, and military levels”
According to Ambassador Vladimir Lipayev, NATO’s decision to recognize Ukraine as a CCDCOE contributing partner was significant and demonstrates aspirations for “integration with NATO infrastructure.”
In an interview with TASS today, Lipayev said, “Our assumptions on this score turned out to be right.”
“This initial action will very definitely be followed by others, with the goal of turning Ukraine into a bastion for Russian political, economic, ideological, and military blackmail.”
However, he said that Russia’s involvement in NATO’s cyber center should not pose a substantial danger to the country’s security because some of the 30 nations exchanging intelligence via CCDCOE have yet to become members of the alliance.
“The NATO Cooperative Cyber Defense Center of Excellence in Tallinn has been operational since 2008, with over 30 nations participating, some of which are not NATO members,” Lipayev continued.
“Estonia and Ukraine have worked together in the cyber area for a long time.”
Russia thwarted attempts to join the NATO alliance.
Ukraine’s route to NATO membership began during the 2008 Bucharest Summit, when its initial application was refused due to strong Russian opposition.
However, during the June 2021 Brussels Summit, the alliance re-confirmed that Ukraine will become a NATO member after completing the Membership Action Plan “as an important component of the process.”
At the time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated, “NATO leaders reaffirmed that Ukraine will become a member of the Alliance, and the MAP is a vital element of the membership process.”
“Ukraine ought to be recognized for its contribution to Euro-Atlantic security.”
