MOSCOW, February 24. /TASS/. Ukraine will be forced to create its own military alliance since NATO is unwilling to grant membership to Kiev, Vladimir Zelensky said.
"If NATO’s doors are closed to us, then we will have no other option but to build a NATO in Ukraine. In other words, we will need to secure the necessary funding, manufacture our own weapons, and create the armed forces that will guarantee peace," he stated at a roundtable in Kiev.
However, Zelensky admitted that Ukraine cannot accomplish this alone, so Kiev must engage in discussions with its allies and urge them to join the alliance.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said after negotiations with US officials in Saudi Arabia on February 18 that Moscow had clarified its stance to Washington, emphasizing that Ukraine’s accession to NATO would present a direct threat to Russia. Earlier today, Lavrov remarked at a press conference following talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan that Russia welcomed US President Donald Trump’s comment that the policy of dragging Kiev into NATO was a mistake. The senior Russian diplomat stressed the need for a clear, irrefutable agreement ensuring that Ukraine would never become a NATO member.