MOSCOW
The proposal that Ukraine could abandon its goal to join the US-led NATO military bloc would be a positive step toward reducing tensions between Moscow and Kiev, the Kremlin said on Monday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said this while responding to a suggestion made by Ukraine’s Ambassador to the UK Vadim Prystaiko, who on Sunday suggested that Kiev was considering ending its goal to join NATO as a way to “avoid” war.
“A recorded refusal by Ukraine, a confirmed rejection of the idea of Ukraine joining NATO, is a step that would contribute significantly to the formulation of a more meaningful response to Russian concerns,” Peskov said.
Ukraine’s accession into NATO has long been a red line for Moscow, which views eastward expansion of the military alliance as a threat to its own security. Last year, Russia proposed a treaty to both the US and NATO that would see the bloc’s enlargement permanently stopped by a legally binding document.
Kiev’s goal to join NATO was enshrined in the country’s constitution in 2019, and, therefore, Prystaiko’s comments have taken everyone by surprise.
Asked by BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Stephen Nolan in an interview on Sunday if Ukraine might “contemplate not joining NATO” to avoid a war, the ambassador responded: “We might, you know, especially [having] been threatened like that, blackmailed by that, and pushed to it.”
After some backlash, he later walked back the statement. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, which suggested that the ambassador’s words were “taken out of context.”
Discussion over Ukraine’s future in the European security structure comes as Russia stands accused of placing more than 100,000 soldiers on the Ukrainian frontier, with some believing this is a sign of an impending military incursion. This claim has repeatedly been denied by the Kremlin.
Ambassador Vadym Prystaiko told the BBC that Ukraine was willing to be “flexible” over its goal to join the Atlantic military alliance, a move Russian President Vladimir Putin has said would be a trigger for war.
Ukraine is not a NATO member but has a promise dating from 2008 that it will eventually be given the opportunity to join, a step that would bring the US-led alliance to Russia’s border.
Russia has moved more than 100,000 troops and heavy weapons to within striking distance of Ukraine in recent weeks, prompting the United States and its NATO allies to warn that an invasion could be imminent.
Moscow denies it is planning an attack, calling the military manoeuvres exercises, but it has issued written demands that NATO forgo any further expansion eastwards including Ukraine. NATO members have rejected the demand.
