Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said that in a conversation with former US president and candidate for the next term, Donald Trump, he raised the issue of the need for Ukraine to join NATO, highlighting the importance of kyiv renouncing the nuclear weapons.
At a press conference after the European Council, where he presented his “victory plan,” Zelensky recalled the Budapest Memorandum, which, in his opinion, was ineffective and did not protect Ukraine when it abandoned its nuclear arsenal.
“Which of these great countries, all the nuclear states, suffered? All? No, one is Ukraine. Who gave away the nuclear weapons? All? One is Ukraine. Who is fighting today? Ukraine,” Zelensky said, focusing on the injustice of the country’s situation.
Zelensky also said that in a conversation with Trump he proposed two possible paths for Ukraine.
Or there will be a nuclear threat in Ukraine or in NATO. Now they are stealing NATO from us,” Zelensky said of his relationship with Trump.@ZelenskyyUaJust give the order, everything will be organized. As we know, depending on the delivery methods, the same meal can vary. pic.twitter.com/vRazyEBTMT
– Serhii Sternenko ✙ (@sternenko) October 17, 2024
“We understand it like this, what is the solution? Or Ukraine will have nuclear weapons, and then this will be protection for us. Or we should have some kind of alliance. Apart from NATO, today we do not know of any effective alliance,” the president said.
According to Zelensky, he explained that NATO countries do not participate in wars, which makes the alliance a better option for Ukraine compared to nuclear weapons. The president emphasized that his arguments were received positively by Trump.
“I think Donald Trump heard me. He said: “They have fair arguments,” Zelensky concluded.
Earlier, Kursor reported that experts assessed whether Zelensky’s victory plan would end the war in Ukraine.
