Russia-Ukraine War: President Zelenskyy says Ukraine willing to drop NATO ambition

Vlodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president, late on Monday said he is prepared to discuss a commitment from Ukraine not to seek NATO membership in exchange for a ceasefire, the withdrawal of Russian troops and a guarantee of Ukraine’s security, Al Jazeera is reporting.

“It’s a compromise for everyone: for the West, which doesn’t know what to do with us with regard to NATO, for Ukraine, which wants security guarantees, and for Russia, which doesn’t want further NATO expansion,” Mr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Ukrainian television channels.

He added that he will be ready to discuss the status of Crimea and the eastern Donbas region held by Russian-backed separatists after a ceasefire and steps towards providing security guarantees.

Mr Zelenskyy had earlier on Monday said a meeting with President Putin of Russia was important in understanding their position.

“I think that, without this meeting, it is impossible to fully understand what they [the Russians] are willing to do to stop the war,” Interfax Ukraine news agency quoted Ukraine’s president as saying in a television interview.

Mr Zelenskyy last week told Ukrainians to accept that it may not become a member of the US-led NATO military alliance which is a key Russian concern that it used to justify its invasion.

“Ukraine is not a member of NATO… 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,” he said.

“I am glad that our people are beginning to understand this and rely on themselves and the partners who are helping us.”

Russia-Ukraine War

Russia on February 24 attacked Ukraine in what it called a ‘special operation’ to ‘denazify’ the Eastern European country

The nearly one-month-old war has left at least 925 civilians dead and 1,400 injured, according to the UN human rights office (OHCHR).

As of March 16, the UN migration agency estimates, nearly 6.5 million people have been displaced inside Ukraine, in addition to the 3.2 million refugees who have already fled the country.

The estimates from the International Organisation for Migration suggests that more people may be displaced in Ukraine than the 13 million displaced in Syria during the war there.

Chiamaka Okafor is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe.