NATO remains open to new members, and Ukraine ultimately decides whether to join this alliance. That, in short, is Washington’s response to Moscow’s demands, which want the guarantee that the neighboring country will never join NATO.
The exact content of the written letter, which was delivered to the Kremlin today, remains secret. But US Secretary of State Blinken summarized the content at a press conference.
“I expect to speak with Mr. Lavrov (his Russian counterpart, ed.) shortly once Moscow has read him,” said Blinken. According to him, the US and Brussels are standing their ground in their support for Ukraine, but there can also be talk about a diplomatic way out. “It is up to Russia how they respond to this.”
Small concessions
According to Blinken, the US and NATO response is in line with the core values the alliance has reiterated in recent weeks. Ukraine’s sovereignty and the free choice of countries to join NATO remain the main premise, the minister said. He hinted that minor concessions had been proposed, but did not provide details.
Tensions between Russia and the West have been running high in recent months. President Putin has gathered more than 100,000 soldiers at the Ukrainian border. Russia sees NATO’s eastward expansion as a threat. The country demands that Ukraine never join and that NATO troops withdraw from Eastern European countries such as Bulgaria and Romania.
Why Russia finds NATO’s growing influence so problematic can be seen in this explainer video:
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