NATO membership for Ukraine not off the table - Trump's deputy special envoy

Senior U.S. official John Cole said on Thursday that the United States has not ruled out Ukraine's potential membership in NATO or a negotiated return to its borders by 2014, contradicting comments made this week by the U.S. Defense Secretary ahead of possible peace talks to end the war in Ukraine. He said this in an interview with Reuters, UNN reports.

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"Right now, it's still on the table," said John Cole, President Donald Trump's deputy special envoy for Ukraine, when asked if the United States has ruled out Ukraine's possible membership in NATO. In an interview with Reuters in Munich, he added that a possible return of Ukraine to pre-2014 borders is also still on the table.

On Wednesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hagel sent a different message, telling Ukraine's military allies in Brussels that returning Ukraine to pre-2014 borders is not realistic and the U.S. does not see Ukraine's NATO membership as part of the solution to the nearly three-year war in Ukraine.

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Speaking after Cole's comments, Trump told reporters at the White House that he did not believe Russia would "allow" Ukraine to join NATO, accusing the administration of former President Joe Biden of even raising the topic.

"I think that's why the war started," Trump said. - "Biden shouldn't have said that.

Earlier on Thursday, Hughes appeared to backtrack on his own remarks, saying at a press conference that "everything is on the table" for talks on the war in Ukraine, and that Trump must decide what concessions will be made.

On Wednesday, Trump ordered senior officials in his administration to begin negotiations to end the war.

Cole is in Munich this week with Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump's top special envoy for Ukraine, for an annual security conference. Kellogg's name did not appear in Wednesday's presidential announcement listing the administration officials who will lead formal peace talks.

Cole said that Steve Vitkoff, the US special envoy to the Middle East, will now assist in the negotiations by taking the lead on talks with Russia. He said that Kellogg and Cole are both involved in negotiations with the Europeans and Ukrainians.

Asked about Kellogg's role in the peace talks, White House spokeswoman Carolyn Leavitt said on Wednesday that Kellogg "remains an important part of this team and this effort.

Zelensky and Putin must talk face to face - Kellogg14.02.25, 11:13 • 29923 views

Cole said that formal talks on Ukraine have not yet begun, and that the US is still working on discussions with Europeans and Ukrainians on how best to end the conflict.

"How do Ukrainians and Europeans fit into all this? We don't know right now," Cole said, adding that "we need to get the Europeans involved.

"Europeans want this war to stop," he said. - "They are more than ready to participate (in military support for Ukraine). There are doubts... about whether they are going to give 100 percent. But everything I hear indicates that they are really ready to intervene.

It is unclear what exactly Washington told the Kremlin about the talks. But Cole said that Putin seemed ready to start talks with Ukraine without preconditions.

"There's been a lot of talk about Steve witkoff's trip to moscow and how he met with Putin," said Cole. - "Putin seems willing to play ball, but we're not sure what that means. I think he's ready to talk.

On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned Western officials on social media not to trust Putin, who launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Officials in Europe expressed deep concern over Hughes' comments on Wednesday. "We shouldn't take anything off the table before the talks start. Because that plays into Russia's hands," Kaja Kallas, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, told reporters on Thursday. - This is appeasement. It has never worked.

Asked whether the US was conceding too much to Putin up front, Cole replied: "Some people have said inappropriate things, but I don't think we're giving up anything.

"With Putin and the Russians, you don't know," Cole said. - "Are they trying to play with us? Or are they sincere? And then you sit down at the table and you find out quickly.