"The best way to preserve our independence, maintain our territorial integrity is not an arms race, not joining a world competing for military conflict, but admission under the protection of a united collective security policy," Yushchenko said during celebrations devoted to the country's Armed Forces Day.
"This is the formula which is optimal for all European countries," he said.
After a NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels on Tuesday, Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said the alliance would "beef up" the NATO-Ukraine and NATO-Georgia Commissions, to help speed up reforms needed for the countries' eventual membership of the alliance.
However, European countries led by Germany derailed U.S. plans to bring the two post-Soviet countries into the Membership Action Plan (MAP).
NATO refused at its April summit to let Georgia and Ukraine into MAP, a key step for membership in the 26-nation alliance, but pledged to review the decision in December. The countries had received strong U.S. backing for their bids.
Nationwide opinion polls indicate that over half of Ukrainians are against NATO membership, while about a third are in favor.
