Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga commented on US President-elect Donald Trump's statement on Ukraine's membership in NATO and said that Russia has not changed its rhetoric of surrender and ultimatums. He said this during a press conference, reports UNN.
Asked to comment on how Ukraine views Donald Trump's public statements yesterday regarding Ukraine's future membership in NATO, and what he thinks Russia might understand, Sibiga said: “I know for a fact that the common interest of the transatlantic community is to achieve a sustainable, just, comprehensive peace. I can say for sure that Russia wants war and destruction of Ukraine. I can say for sure that Russia has not changed its rhetoric - the rhetoric of surrender and ultimatums.
The Foreign Minister noted that the best format for exchanging views is direct communication.
“Therefore, we are extremely interested in an active dialogue, including at the level of leaders, and this format allows us to exchange views very effectively, both on the causes and consequences,” Sibiga said.
Context
According to the BBC, Trump's answers to questions about Ukraine made it clear that he was still more interested in criticizing Joe Biden than in the real circumstances of the conflict and the possibility of its resolution.
He reiterated that if he had been president, this war would never have started.
Trump also said that he “can understand Russia's feelings” about Joe Biden allegedly breaking the “agreement” to refuse to accept Ukraine into NATO.
“A big part of the problem was that Russia has been saying for many years, long before Putin, that NATO should not be in Ukraine. It was kind of written in stone,” Trump said.
“And somewhere along the way, Biden said, no, they should be able to join NATO. Well, for Russia to have someone right on their doorstep, I can understand their feelings about that,” the newly elected US president added.
When asked by a journalist to explain when exactly the United States denied the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO, the president-elect stated: “I think it was always clear.
Трамп заявив, що країни НАТО повинні витрачати 5% ВВП на оборону07.01.25, 20:39