Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said today in an interview with American television station NBC that he is certain that Russia could declare war on NATO if United States President Donald Trump reduces his support for the Atlantic Alliance and it is weakened.
As US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on a tour of the Middle East, is scheduled to meet with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators in Saudi Arabia, Zelensky said Trump is capable of persuading Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire, nearly three years after the start of the Russian invasion.
"We think Putin will declare war on NATO," Zelensky told American television on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, where he called on his European allies to strengthen and build "the armed forces of Europe" to confront the American and Russian blocs.
According to him, Vladimir Putin predicts a weakening of NATO, which could occur if the US withdraws military support to Europe.
"I don't know if they (the Russians) will want 30 percent of Europe, 50 percent, I don't know. Nobody knows. But they will have that opportunity," the Ukrainian president warned, adding that the Russian military is already training a large number of soldiers on the territory of Belarus.
Leaders of major European countries are set to meet in Paris tomorrow for talks on European security and Ukraine, as the US administration criticizes the EU and seeks to negotiate directly with Russia to find a way out of the conflict in Ukraine.
In an interview with an American channel, Zelensky warned that the Russian president does not want peace.
"Don't trust him. Don't trust Putin," the Ukrainian president added.
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