Russia praised the Trump administration ‘reality’ on the issue of Ukraine

“I think it is a realistic approach,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova said on February 14, when commenting on US Secretary of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The head of the Pentagon then said Ukraine was unlikely to join NATO and Kiev’s goal of restoring the border before 2014, when Russia merged the Crimea peninsula, was “unrealistic”. Mr. Hegseth then one day was more cautious, when he said “everything is still being considered” in the negotiations.

“We said from the beginning that Ukraine’s joining NATO was unacceptable to Russia. That created a serious threat to Russia’s security and will lead to catastrophic consequences for Europe,” Zakharova emphasize.

The Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman also mentioned the previous comment of US President Donald Trump, who said that Joe Biden’s predecessor was responsible for the conflict in Ukraine and for suggesting Kiev. Can join NATO in the future.

“President Trump yesterday said that he thought everything began after Biden’s team made comments related to NATO, which is likely to let Ukraine join and other things,” said Zakharova. . “I think this shows reality.”

At the White House press conference on February 12, President Trump also rejected Ukraine’s prospect of joining NATO and supported Minister Hegseth’s statement that Ukraine was difficult to restore the border before 2014.

Russia launched a campaign in Ukraine at the end of February 2022, partly due to the concern at NATO’s expansion to the East, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

NATO maintains the “opening” policy, that is, any country that meets the necessary criteria can apply for joining the alliance if desired. NATO has welcomed two new members, Sweden and Finland since the conflict in Ukraine broke out.

Ukraine sent the goal of joining NATO into the 2019 Constitution, despite Russian warnings that the possibility of this alliance deploying forces and weapons on the border would create an unacceptable security threat.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on February 14 confirmed his dialogue about all aspects of peace with the US, including Kiev’s issue to join NATO. However, he acknowledged that the United States did not want to discuss this issue, adding that Washington did not believe Kiev “could become a part of the alliance”.

Ukraine leaders also left the possibility of changing the approach to joining NATO if they receive security.