Putin Says Ukraine Can Join EU, Not NATO, And Meets Slovakia’s Fico in Beijing

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

BEIJING/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Moscow has “never opposed Ukraine’s potential membership of the European Union,” but warned that Ukraine joining the NATO military alliance would be unacceptable.

Putin also dismissed Western warnings that Russia could attack Europe, calling them “hysteria.” However, he accused NATO of seeking to “absorb the entire post-Soviet space,” and warned that Moscow had to defend its interests. “Ukrainian membership of NATO would have been unacceptable,” he said.

Putin spoke in Beijing after meeting Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, the only EU leader to meet him and attend China’s Victory Day commemorations this week.

Fico defended his attendance at Beijing’s military parade marking 80 years since the end of World War II, saying he wanted to show “respect to all victims.” Chinese President Xi Jinping presided over the event alongside leaders of Russia, North Korea, Iran, Myanmar, also known as Burma, and other Global South nations. No Western leaders were present.

The Slovak leader also pushed for restoring economic ties with Moscow despite the war in Ukraine, condemning Kyiv for strikes on energy infrastructure that carries Russian oil and gas to Slovakia and Hungary. Both countries remain heavily dependent on Russian energy.

EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE

Fico said Ukraine “has the right to a European perspective” but stressed it must meet all conditions for EU entry. “Political criteria cannot prevail over preparation criteria,” he added.

He repeated his stance that Ukraine should not join NATO, echoing Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has vowed to veto EU accession talks with Kyiv.

Putin praised Fico, saying Russia “highly values the independent foreign policy that you and your government are pursuing.”

Yet NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has warned that Russia could pose a direct military threat to the alliance within five years. “Vladimir Putin should know that if he will try [to attack the Baltic region], our reaction will be devastating,” Rutte said recently.

Tuesday’s meeting underscored Europe’s sharp divisions as Ukraine fights to defend itself against Russia’s full-scale invasion launched in February 2022.

Latest Worthy News