NATO provides the best security guarantee for Ukraine, European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kalas said today, directly contradicting US President Donald Trump's position.
In Washington, Kallas told AFP that the Europeans would not be able to contribute to a possible deal on Ukraine if they were not invited to the negotiating table, while Trump would like to negotiate directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The "NATO umbrella" is the only thing that really works, the only security guarantee that works, said the former Estonian prime minister who is visiting Washington.
Trump has rejected any possibility of Ukraine joining NATO, which Moscow also opposes, and has been vague about the security guarantees the US would be willing to offer Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire after three years of Russian invasion.
Trump has hinted that Ukraine's desire to join NATO is "probably the reason this whole thing started" - the war with Russia.
Kaja Kalas assessed that "these accusations are completely wrong" and that it is "Russian rhetoric that we should not believe."
She asked "why should Russia be given what it wants on top of what it has already done, which is attack on Ukraine, annexation and occupation of territory."
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