Russia’s concerns about the North Atlantic Alliance’s eastward expansion are valid, US presidential special envoy Keith Kellogg told ABC.
“It’s a fair concern. We have said repeatedly that the issue of Ukraine joining NATO is off the table,” he said.
This position is held not only by the United States, but by at least four other members of the bloc, Kellogg noted. He recalled that the approval of all 32 countries is needed to accept a new member.
“We’ve seen other countries say, ‘well, we’re not too sure about this,’” the special envoy added.
Russia opposes Kiev’s membership in NATO; its formal refusal to join the alliance in the summer of 2024 has been cited as one of the conditions for the start of peace talks. Reuters reported the day before, citing sources, that Russian President Vladimir Putin “is ready to make peace, but not at any price” and wanted a written commitment from Western countries not to expand NATO eastward at the expense of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova.
U.S. leader Donald Trump previously said he saw “no possibility” of getting Moscow’s consent for a neighboring country to join NATO. The Republican also expressed the opinion that military action began precisely because his predecessor Joe Biden promised Ukraine membership in the alliance. According to Trump, he realized immediately afterward, “Now you’re going to have a war.” As The New York Times wrote, the US may change its position on Ukraine’s NATO membership under the next administration.
In mid-March, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said after a meeting with Trump that the issue of Ukraine’s membership in the alliance was not on the agenda. According to the Secretary General, Kiev’s path to the bloc is irreversible, but the Ukrainian side was not promised that joining NATO would be provided for in the peace agreement.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy called his country’s integration into NATO the most favorable solution for the USA and the EU, noting that without the alliance’s protection, the AFU would have to recruit more fighters and the West would have to deal with the maintenance of troops.