Poland suggests Ukraine may have to wait for NATO

KIEV (Reuters) - Poland offered fresh support for Ukraine's bid for NATO membership on Friday, but signaled that the former Soviet republic may not immediately receive an invitation to start the long process of accession.

Ukraine will hear from the alliance next week whether it will be accepted into NATO's Membership Action Plan (MAP), a major step on the road. Diplomats say several European countries, including France and Germany, are opposed, as is Ukraine's powerful neighbor Russia.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Ukraine had "serious supporters" for its NATO aspirations, including the United States. President George W. Bush is to visit Kiev next week ahead of the NATO summit, being held in neighboring Romania.

But Tusk's comments, after talks with Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, suggested Kiev would have to wait a while longer.

"We don't know if this (support) is enough for (a positive decision) today, but your actions and our support should all bring results," he told a news conference, standing alongside Tymoshenko.

"If not today, then tomorrow. If not tomorrow, then the day after. The issue is not easy, we know that. But if it comes to Poland, we are determined to support your aspirations."

Poland has traditionally been Ukraine's most loyal supporter in international affairs, particularly since pro-Western politicians took office after the 2004 "Orange revolution".

Any indication from Poland that Ukraine had only limited chances of securing fast-track NATO membership would be seen as an acknowledgement that it was unlikely to occur at the Bucharest summit.

France, Germany and a handful of other states oppose Ukraine's move because of deep divisions within the country about the issue after decades of Soviet propaganda portraying the alliance as the ultimate enemy.

DELAYED DECISION?

A poll conducted this month put support in Ukraine for NATO membership at just over 30 percent. All political forces are committed to putting alliance membership to a referendum.

Furthermore, Russia is deeply suspicious of NATO and opposes any bid for membership by former Soviet republics.

The NATO aspirations of Ukraine and Georgia have helped to deepen the divide between Washington and Moscow over other issues such as the proposed deployment of a U.S. missile shield in eastern Europe and the independence of Kosovo from Serbia.

Diplomats have signaled that if there is no consensus on MAP in Bucharest, the summit could offer Kiev and Tbilisi assurances that they could join the plan very soon, possibly as early as a new summit scheduled for next year.

Former foreign minister Borys Tarasyuk, an ardent proponent of membership, made similar comments about a possible delayed decision at a conference on Friday.

"If the decision is not clearly in favor...I believe it will at least be positive in principle with only implementation postponed, and perhaps not beyond 2008," he was quoted as saying.

But Georgia's foreign minister said after talks in Brussels this week that he was not interested in such offers, and diplomats say NATO supporters of Ukraine and Georgia would not discuss what would effectively be a second-best option.

And one diplomat said no final decision had yet been taken: "The ball is still in play."

(Additional reporting by Mark John in Brdo, Slovenia)