Zelenskiy again urged Western allies to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine and deplored NATO’s refusal to do so thus far, adding that the dire situation in his country has “allowed us to see who our true friends are these past 20 days”.
Ukraine must admit it can’t join NATO, Zelenskiy the dire situation in his country has “allowed us to see who our true friends are these past 20 days”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy may have begun to soft-pedal following Tuesday’s final entry of Russian forces into his last haven of Kyiv, the nation’s capital, as he said that Ukraine must accept it will not be able to join NATO.
TASS News Agency of Russia and a western medium, Daily Mail Online reported reported the development Tuesday with Mail saying that this new statement – coming from a man as steel-hearted as Zelenskiy – will be music to the ears of Vladimir Putin and could pave the way for some kind of peace deal between the warring nations.
Zelenskiy, who has become a symbol of resistance to Russia’s onslaught over the last 20 days, said in the last hours of Tuesday that “Ukraine is not a member of NATO” and that “we have heard for years that the doors were open, but we also heard that we could not join. It’s a truth and it must be recognised.”
His statement, while making no firm commitments, will be seen as further opening the door to some kind of peace deal between Ukraine and Russia after negotiators hailed ‘substantial’ progress at the weekend – without giving any idea what such a deal would look like.
Ahead of the ‘invasion’, Putin had been demanding guarantees that Ukraine would never be admitted to NATO along with the removal of all the alliance’s troops and weapons from ex-Soviet countries. After being rebuffed by Kyiv, Washington and NATO, he launched his ‘special military operation’ to ‘demilitarise’ and ‘de-Nazify’ the country.
Russian negotiators have softened their stance a little since then, saying they want Ukraine to declare neutrality, disarm, recognise Crimea as part of Russia and recognise the whole of the Donbass as independent.
Ukraine has been demanding a ceasefire and the immediate withdrawal of all Russian forces. Talks have been ongoing this week and Moscow has made no mention of wider demands on NATO in recent days.
Zelenskiy again urged Western allies to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine and deplored NATO’s refusal to do so thus far, adding that the dire situation in his country has “allowed us to see who our true friends are these past 20 days”.
Speaking to the Canadian Parliament, Zelenskiy said: ‘Can you imagine calling other friendly nations, and asking them ‘please close the sky, close the airspace, stop the bombing’. And in turn they express their deep concerns about the situation.
‘We talk to our partners and they say ‘please hold on a little longer’,’ Zelenskiy said.
Military analysts have said a no-fly zone is unlikely because the U.S. and its allies believe it could escalate the war into a nuclear confrontation.
