Zelensky reiterates demands for NATO membership
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has once again emphatically called for his country to join NATO to protect it from Russian aggression. At a meeting with former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Selensky called membership in the alliance the “best security guarantee” for the country, said the head of the presidential office, Andriy Yermak, in Kyiv on Sunday. It is important to actively promote the goal of NATO membership.
Russian President Vladimir Putin cited Ukraine’s aspirations to join NATO as one of the reasons for the war. Moscow had always mentioned Kiev’s renunciation of membership in the military alliance as a condition for resolving the conflict. Nuclear power Russia claims to see its security threatened by a possible NATO presence in Ukraine.
According to Yermak, Zelensky and Johnson also discussed the peace summit proposed by Ukraine. A date for such a meeting has not yet been set. Russia has also rejected Zelenskiy’s demands, which demanded not only security guarantees but also a complete withdrawal of Kremlin troops from Ukrainian territory, as unrealistic.
Johnson emphasized in Kyiv in a video published by Zelensky on Telegram that he had come to help the country in difficult times. The politician had previously visited the Kiev suburbs of Bucha and Borodjanka, where Russian troops are accused of the most serious war crimes.