Ukraine expects from the Joe Biden administration not words, but actions, including on the issue of the country’s entry into NATO.
This was stated by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a commentary on the CNN television company during a trip to Donbass. CNN’s material on the situation in southeastern Ukraine was published on Monday.
“If they see Ukraine in NATO, then they should say it directly, and then do it,” the Ukrainian president said, answering the question whether Ukraine receives sufficient support from the American president.
“Ukraine needs more than words,” Zelensky added.
He did not rule out that the unambiguous support of the West for Ukraine’s membership in NATO could cause a response from Russia, but noted that joining the North Atlantic Alliance is a definite position of Ukraine, and it intends to achieve this goal in contacts with partners.
Zelenskiy also said that Ukrainian soldiers are tired of seven years of conflict, but are ready for a clash with Russia, the likelihood of which, according to the Ukrainian president, remains. “This can happen every day. They are ready, but we are also ready,” he said, answering the relevant question.
The situation in Donbass became more complicated at the end of February; shootings were recorded in the region almost every day, including with the use of mortars and grenade launchers. The parties blamed each other for aggravating the situation. Against this background, US President Joe Biden held his first telephone conversation with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, and contacts took place between the heads of the foreign policy and defense departments of the two countries. On Sunday, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed concern about the actions of the Russian Federation near the border with Ukraine and reiterated the White House’s position that Moscow will have to “pay” in case of “aggressive actions.”
In recent days, Western countries have repeatedly expressed concern about the statements of the Ukrainian military about the build-up of Russian forces along the border with Ukraine. As the press secretary of the Russian president Dmitry Peskov said earlier, the movement of Russian troops across the territory of the Russian Federation should not bother other states, since it does not threaten them in any way. He also stressed that what is happening in the Donbass is an internal Ukrainian conflict in which Russian troops have never participated.
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