Zelensky says Biden supports Ukraine's accession to NATO - Sep. 13, 2021

Zelensky says Biden supports Ukraine’s accession to NATO

Published Sept. 13, 2021 at 3:35 pm

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets with U.S. President Joe Biden in the Oval Office on Sept. 1, 2021. This was the two leaders’ first face-to-face meeting and the first trip to the White House for a Ukrainian leader in more than four years. The U.S. and Ukraine issued a joint statement calling bilateral relations “stronger than ever.” And the U.S. sweetened the atmosphere with more than $100 million in new aid. But Zelensky did not get unequivocal U.S. support of Ukraine’s bid for NATO membership. He also did not persuade Biden to change course and impose sanctions that would stop the completion of the Russian-German Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Photo by Press Service of the President of Ukraine

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that during a meeting with the United States leader Joe Biden, he discussed the prospects for Ukraine’s accession to NATO.

“I asked Biden how about Ukraine’s NATO membership […]. I say as I remember – not all words will be correct: ‘I think you should be there, but this does not only depend on my decision,” Zelensky said in an interview with CNN.

He said they devoted about 20 or 30 minutes to discuss this issue.

However, Zelensky told Biden that “thanks to your decision, this path (to NATO) will be shorter, more transparent (…) for us, for Ukraine.”

Zelensky also believes that it is incorrect to compare Ukraine and Afghanistan in terms of U.S. assistance.

“I think we cannot compare Ukraine and Afghanistan. Ukraine is not as dependent on the United States as Afghanistan was,” he said.

The head of Ukraine believes that it is impossible to capture such a large country as Ukraine in four, five or seven days.

He said that Russia has one of the most powerful armies in the world. However, Ukraine, as far as possible, is independent of any other economy.

Zelensky believes that there is no talk of the United States “leaving” Ukraine and said that Washington, on the contrary, should increase its presence.