KIEV, November 16 (RIA Novosti) - NATO-Ukraine consultations at the level of Defense Ministers will take place at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Monday, the Ukrainian defense ministry said.

The consultations are expected to focus on the reformation of the Ukrainian Defense Forces and Ukraine's efforts to strengthen security in the country, the ministry said.

Ahead of the start of the consultations, acting Defense Minister Valery Ivashchenko, who leads the Ukrainian delegation, will hold a meeting with NATO Deputy Secretary General Jirzhi Shedevi.

The pro-Western leadership of Ukraine has been seeking to join the Western military alliance, but at the NATO summit in April 2008, members refused to admit the post-Soviet country into the Membership Action Plan (MAP), a key step for membership.