KYIV, March 18 - President Petro Poroshenko, who runs for re-election this month, vowed to prepare Ukraine to joining the European Union and NATO if he is elected to the second term in office.

"I am planning to prepare Ukraine for joining NATO and the EU by the end of my second presidential term. And to start absolutely realistic negotiations on joining the EU and make sure that Ukraine receives a NATO Membership Action Plan in 2023," Poroshenko said at a meeting with voters in the center of Kyiv on Sunday.