Ukraine’s accession to the North Atlantic Alliance or its re -acquisition of the lost territory after the war with Russia are not real targets of peace negotiations. This was announced by US Defense Minister Pete Hegseth on Wednesday in Brussels at a contact group meeting to defend Ukraine, TASR writes, according to DPA and AFP reports.
Hegseth stressed at the meeting that achieving peace in Ukraine is “the highest priority” for US President Donald Trump. “We will only establish a permanent peace when we combine the Alliance forces with a realistic evaluation (situation on) the battlefield,” Hegseth said at NATO headquarters in Brussels. “However, we must first realize that the return to Ukraine’s borders before 2014 is not a real goal. The pursuit of this illusory goal will only extend the war and cause further suffering, “ noted.
The Minister also accentuated that Washington would not send Ukraine soldiers under any peace agreement. “To make it clear that any security warranty will not be the deployment of US troops in Ukraine,” The head of the defense department explained.
The United States wants “sovereign and prosperous Ukraine”Hegseth said. However, according to the Minister, the US is also struggling with other security threats along its borders and in Pacific. “Since the United States draws attention to these threats, the European Allies must be at the forefront (conflict solutions in Ukraine),” Dodal Hegseth.
Pentagon chief therefore called on the Allies to increase the support of Ukraine and also increase spending on his own defense. “Securing European security must be a necessity for European NATO members,” Zhodnotil Hegseth. “Europe must provide the bulk of the future … (defensive and humanitarian) aid to Ukraine,” The minister specified. He also warned of “An unbalanced burden distribution” Alliances that Washington will not accept.
“The United States is still devoted to NATO and a defense partnership with Europe,” He added Hegseth, but pointed out that the US will not tolerate an unbalanced relationship supporting addiction.
