Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Moscow has never opposed the prospect of Ukraine joining the European Union, adding that he believes it is possible to reach a consensus to guarantee the security of both Russia and Ukraine.
Speaking during a visit to China, Putin dismissed European leaders’ claims that Russia might one day launch a deeper attack into Europe, describing them as “hysteria” and “horror stories.”
On Ukraine, he argued that in 2022 Russia was forced to respond to what he called a Western attempt, through NATO, to absorb the entire post-Soviet space, something he said posed a direct threat to Moscow’s security.
“As for Ukraine’s accession to the EU, we have never opposed it,” Putin told Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico during talks in China. “As for NATO, that is another issue.”
Putin also revealed that he had discussed Ukraine’s security during a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump on August 15 in Alaska.
“There are options to guarantee Ukraine’s security once the conflict ends,” he said. “And it seems to me there is an opportunity to find consensus here.”
He added that while it is up to Ukraine to decide how to ensure its own security, “its security cannot be achieved at the expense of other countries, Russia included.”
The Russian leader went on to praise Slovakia’s stance, saying he valued what he described as Bratislava’s “independent diplomacy.”
“We greatly appreciate the independent foreign policy that you and your team are pursuing,” Putin told Fico in a meeting broadcast on television.
An EU member state, Slovakia remains heavily dependent on Russian gas. Prime Minister Fico, known for his pro-Russian views, has repeatedly criticized Brussels’ support for Kyiv since the beginning of Moscow’s invasion in 2022.
CNA