Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has made a big statement regarding the membership of NATO. He said on Tuesday that Ukraine should accept that it will not be part of the coalition. The special thing is that Russia, which attacked the neighboring country in February, is citing NATO membership as the biggest reason for this. The round of talks between Kyiv and Moscow has resumed on Tuesday.
“It is clear that Ukraine is not a member of NATO,” Zelensky said in a meeting with Joint Operations Force (JEF) leaders. We understand this. We are enough people.’ On Ukraine’s efforts to join NATO, he said, “For years we have heard about the allegedly open door, but we have also heard that we should not enter and that is true and we must believe it.” ‘ The country has been trying for NATO membership since 2008.
However, Zelensky also made it clear that a guarantee of defense from NATO allies is necessary to keep Ukraine safe amid Russian aggression. “Russian aggression in Ukraine destroyed the security base in our region,” he said. The President of Ukraine said that just like allies of NATO, the skies of Ukraine also need to be protected. He said he understands that there is always a ‘but’ involved in such situations.
He said, ‘I ask you, by helping us, you help yourself.’ Zelensky said, ‘You know what weapons we need. You know what security measures we need. You know we urgently need airplanes. It would be very difficult for us without your efforts. We are grateful to you, but understand that we need more.’
“We are glad that our people have started to understand this and are relying on ourselves and our partners to support us,” he said. JEF may include Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Sweden and Norway.