In a televised speech on April 3, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his displeasure with Western leaders, whom he believes are responsible for blocking the country’s application for membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Zelenskyy’s address took place, as the Ukrainian leader noted, on the fourteenth anniversary of NATO’s Bucharest Summit. Member nations had debated creating a Membership Action Plan for Ukraine at the 2008 meeting, but the country’s path to NATO inclusion was ultimately denied, Politico reports.
“There was a chance to take Ukraine out of the ‘gray zone’ in Eastern Europe. The gray zone between NATO and Russia. Out of the gray zone in which Moscow thinks they are allowed to do anything they want. Even the most horrific war crimes,” Zelenskyy said in the speech.
“Under optimistic diplomatic statements that Ukraine could become a member of NATO, then, in 2008, refusal to accept Ukraine into the alliance was hidden,” Zelenskyy said. “The absurd fear of some politicians toward Russia was hidden.”
Ukraine’s membership bid was denied, reportedly at the behest of France and Germany, whose leaders were trying to appease Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Ukrainian president addressed the two countries’ leaders by name on Sunday night, inviting German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy to visit the war-torn nation’s Bucha region. Zelenskyy said he wanted them “to see with their own eyes the tortured Ukrainian men and women.”
According to The Guardian, recent media coverage of the ongoing conflict with Russia has focused on the Bucha region of Ukraine. Images of destroyed buildings and deceased civilians and allegations of war crimes have dominated news headlines far and wide.
The Russian government rejects the claims that it is responsible for the destruction pictured and suggests that the photos have been doctored for propaganda purposes. Russian officials allege that the Ukrainian civilians photographed were murdered by their own military in a false flag operation, The Guardian reports.
The Kremlin also stated that they would begin their own investigation into whether Russian soldiers were being impersonated to increase sympathy for the Ukrainian war efforts.
For months, it has been speculated that renewed interest in full NATO membership for Ukraine was one of the reasons for the Russian military action that began in late February.
Tulsi Gabbard, a former U.S. Representative and 2020 Presidential candidate, expressed this belief near the start of the invasion.
She tweeted on February 23, “This war and suffering could have easily been avoided if Biden Admin/NATO had simply acknowledged Russia’s legitimate security concerns regarding Ukraine’s becoming a member of NATO, which would mean US/NATO forces right on Russia’s border.”
In March, President Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine would not become a member of NATO in the near future.
“It is clear that Ukraine is not a member of NATO,” he said. “We understand that.”
Business Insider reports that during last week’s peace negotiations with Russia, Zelenskyy also suggested that Ukraine would agree to forgo the idea of joining NATO permanently. The declaration was an attempt at securing a deal with Russia to withdraw its troops from the country.
