"The ships of NATO Standing Mine Countermeasures Group 2 (SNMCMG2) arrived in the port of Odessa to pay a visit to Ukraine," the Ukrainian navy said o Facebook.
The Polish Navy’s command ship ORP Kontradmiral Xawery Czernicki, the Spanish Navy’s minehunter ESPS DUERO, the German Navy’s minesweeper FGS ROTTWEIL and the Turkish’s Navy minehunter TCG ALANYA arrived in the Ukrainian port on Friday.
Several meetings between the SNMCMG2 command and the Ukrainian officials are scheduled.
Ukrainian Navy service members are set to visit the NATO ships, which will open to the public later on.
In December 2014, Ukraine cancelled its non-aligned status, confirming its intention to join NATO. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said a referendum on NATO membership would be held by 2020, after all NATO requirements are met.
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