Donald Trump’s special representative, Keith Kellogg, stated on Fox News that Ukraine’s accession to NATO is off the table and not up for discussion. According to him, the U.S. position on this matter has remained unchanged since 2008.
Kellogg recalled that back in 2008, then-U.S. Ambassador to Russia William Burns warned Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that Ukraine’s membership in NATO was an unachievable goal. Trump himself has repeatedly voiced the same view. He believes that President Joe Biden’s promise to provide Ukraine with NATO membership guarantees was one of the factors that led to the military conflict with Russia.
Ukraine submitted a fast-track application for NATO membership in the fall of 2022. At the time, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the issue could only be considered if Kyiv renounced the territories it had lost. His successor, Mark Rutte, later stated that Ukraine’s membership is no longer on the agenda.
According to Bloomberg, Kyiv’s willingness to abandon its NATO aspirations is one of the proposals brought forward by the U.S. during peace negotiations held in Paris on April 17. The U.S. initiative also reportedly includes recognizing Russia’s control over the territories it has seized.
In June 2024, Kellogg proposed his own plan for resolving the conflict: military aid to Ukraine would continue only if Kyiv begins negotiations with Moscow. If Russia refuses to engage, the U.S. would increase its support for Ukraine. Trump has also suggested that the U.S. could withdraw from peace talks altogether if either side complicates the resolution process.
