Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this Saturday that during trilateral negotiations in Abu Dhabi, the United States for the first time raised the possibility of admitting Ukraine to NATO if its forces withdraw from the parts they still control in the Donbas.
“I have repeatedly said: Ukraine does not withdraw and does not cede its territory to terrorists. The Americans raised the question: ‘And if Ukraine joins NATO, will it withdraw from Donbas?’. It was the first time (they said it),” he declared in a meeting with journalists, in statements cited by the Ukrinform agency.
“We are discussing with partners a comprehensive security package that they can offer us during the negotiations: specific security guarantees from NATO and the EU, a strong Ukrainian army – and this means an appropriate number of personnel, weapons, financial support for a period of time – and the Prosperity Plan,” he added.
“This is all being debated”
Regarding the possibility of exchanging part of Ukrainian territory for membership in NATO, Zelensky pointed out that it is not a decision that is his responsibility to make, although he did not reject the possibility outright.
“If the American side confirms this to us, together with the other NATO colleagues, then I will ask the opinion of our society, do we accept it or not? I do not have the right to decide at my discretion. But we need details, which are not yet available, and all this is being debated right now,” he stressed.
Even if Ukraine accepted this option, this would not imply that it would officially recognize Russian sovereignty over the territories that have been occupied by Moscow’s forces, the president stressed, hinting that it could accept it de facto.
Joining NATO, an important security guarantee
Zelensky argued that joining NATO would be an important security guarantee due to the collective defense clause, but indicated that for the moment Washington had only offered guarantees “similar” to Articles 4 and 5 of the Alliance Charter, which however does not imply the possibility of deploying US troops on the ground.
On the other hand, the president assured that he would not accept under any circumstances the possibility of anchoring in the constitution a possible neutral status of Ukraine, as Moscow demands.
“We are not in NATO anyway. If neutrality means not being in NATO, we are already in that status. And what then will protect our long-term security?” he said.
