According to him, Ukraine can be admitted to NATO even with the conflict in Donbass.
A regular NATO summit ended in Brussels, following which the presidents of the alliance member states gave a joint press conference. As expected, the most questions from journalists were for US President Joe Biden. And almost everything concerned Russia and Biden’s upcoming meeting with Vladimir Putin.
Komsomolskaya Pravda chose the most important statements of the American leader.
ON RELATIONS WITH RUSSIA
- The United States is not looking for a conflict with Russia. I have already spoken about this, and I will tell President Putin about it during our talks on Wednesday in Geneva – there are areas in which the US and Russia can work together for a common benefit. But we will respond to its malicious activity. And recently, we have seen an increase in such activity in the cybersphere. Russia, and with it China, is clearly trying to drive a wedge between its NATO allies. Where our positions diverge, we need to clarify where the “red lines” are.
O PUTIN
- You know that I have already met with him in person. My opinion: this is an intelligent, tough person. He is a worthy opponent. When I was asked the same question, do I consider Putin a murderer, I was honest. But I think it doesn’t really matter in the sense of the upcoming meeting in Geneva.
ABOUT BULK
- If Alexei Navalny dies in prison, it will be a real tragedy. For the whole world, this will be an eloquent signal that Moscow does not intend to respect human rights. If that happens, it will undoubtedly hurt Russia’s relations with the rest of the world, including the United States.
ON UKRAINE’S ACCESSION TO NATO
- My answer is no. It’s all about meeting the criteria. First of all, Ukrainians need to get rid of corruption, as well as meet other requirements. In this case, Kiev will receive a specific action plan from the leadership of the alliance. The situation with the prospects of Ukraine in NATO will become clearer in the future, and before that we intend to do everything possible so that this country is able to resist the aggression of Russia. At the same time, the situation in Donbass should not become an obstacle on the way of Ukraine’s accession to NATO.