MOSCOW, May 21. /TASS/. Neither the European Union nor NATO will ever accept Ukraine into their ranks because they understand the colossal resources required to rebuild the country they themselves destroyed, MGIMO Professor Georgy Muradov, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Crimea to the President of the Russian Federation, said in an interview with TASS.

In April, The Economist, citing unnamed Western sources, reported that Ukraine’s hopes of becoming a NATO member in the foreseeable future were dead. The sources stated that former US President Joe Biden was on the fence about Kiev joining the alliance, but that any remaining hopes were "killed" by Donald Trump's opposition to the idea. "Ukraine will never be a part of NATO or the EU because the countries in these alliances understand they will have to feed and rebuild Ukraine, which they don’t want to do. They destroyed it as part of the Russian World, seeking to inflict maximum damage on Russia. Furthermore, Ukraine is their economic competitor; it produces the same products as they do, but at a much lower price. And there, in the EU, a conflict over economic relations with Ukraine will immediately arise," Muradov noted.

According to him, the EU has become a military-economic machine for the West, supplying the Kiev regime with money and intelligence and organizing the production of military equipment for the war with Russia. "They benefit from Ukraine’s status as a mercenary state for armed struggle against our state. In this regard, the European Union poses a threat to the survival of Ukraine itself," the expert stressed.

As the Financial Times (FT) previously reported, citing sources, Germany proposed associate membership status for Ukraine, meaning the country would be able to participate in events attended by relevant ministers and heads of state, but would not grant it voting rights or the "automatic right" to receive funds from the EU’s common budget. Paris refers to this partial membership as "integrated state status," stating that Kiev would not participate in the Common Agricultural Policy and European funding programs until full EU membership.

According to FT, Germany and France believe the new status would still have important symbolic significance for Ukraine. Berlin assumes that such a soft EU membership option would include a mutual defense clause, which is considered very important by the Ukrainian authorities given the lack of prospects for NATO membership.