Ukraine says its U.K. ambassador did not offer to bargain away NATO aspirations in Russia standoff

published 14 February 2022

Ukraine's foreign ministry said Monday that a comment by Kyiv's ambassador in London about NATO and Russia has been "taken out of context." Ambassador Vadym Prystaiko told BBC News that Ukraine could be "flexible" about NATO membership, perhaps dropping its constitutionally enshrined aspirations to join the Western military alliance, "especially being threatened like that, blackmailed by that, and pushed to it."

British officials told BBC it was "too early" to tell if Prystaiko's comment was a genuine negotiating chip. Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko clarified on social media — in English — that no, it was not.

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NATO's mutual defense clause means that if one country in the alliance is attacked, the other countries will come to its aid. Putin says he sees NATO's expansion into Central and Eastern Europe as a dangerous encroachment into Russia's sphere of influence. But as Nikolenko suggests, using the threat of invasion to keep countries out of NATO might only make such security guarantees more attractive to Russia's neighbors.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.

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