Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will not renounce Kyiv’s aspiration to join NATO, his top envoy emphasized after another diplomat seemed to suggest such a concession to avert the threat of a major Russian military invasion.
“Ukraine’s strategic course on joining NATO remains unchanged,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted. “It is enshrined in our Constitution and National Foreign Policy Strategy, supported by a growing majority of Ukrainians. It’s only up to Ukraine and thirty NATO allies to decide on the issue of membership.”
Kuleba’s statement fortified a diplomatic posture that seemed to wobble over the weekend when Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Vadym Prystaiko seemed to allow that Zelensky might agree to such “serious concessions” if it would persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin not to launch an invasion of Ukraine. Prystaiko, a former foreign minister, walked back the statement even as the Kremlin seized on the comment.
“It goes without saying that Ukraine’s confirmed pledge, formalized in some way, not to join NATO would be a step that might considerably contribute to formulating a more meaningful response to Russia’s concerns,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
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The Ukrainian Constitution affirms “the strategic course of the state on acquiring full-fledged membership of Ukraine in the European Union” and NATO. Prystaiko’s original statement, prompted by a media question about whether Kyiv would give up on joining NATO “if it would stop war,” acknowledged that basic law and downplayed Moscow’s claim to regard Ukrainian membership in NATO as a security threat.
“Frankly, Russia is already bordering NATO,” said Prystaiko, referring to other Central European and Eastern European member-states of NATO, as he argued that Putin fears the contrast between Russia and Ukraine that would become apparent to Russian people.
“This is dangerous,” he told the BBC. “It’s not for the people of Russia, not for the territory of Russia, but for the particular regime they have right now. Who knows? Maybe they will change, and we will not see this anymore.”
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Prystaiko said “we are flexible” about “trying to find the best way out” of the crisis despite also invoking the Ukrainian Constitution. In a subsequent BBC appearance, he said the “concessions” Ukraine could make have “nothing to do with NATO.”
