Putin Discusses Ukraine Security and EU Membership in China Talks
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Moscow has never been against the idea of Ukraine joining the European Union. He also mentioned the possibility of reaching a mutual agreement to ensure the security of both Russia and Ukraine.
Following their meeting in Alaska last month, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that he believes Putin is “tired” of the war in Ukraine. However, he added that it remains uncertain whether peace can actually be achieved to end what has become Europe’s deadliest war since the Second World War.
Despite these comments, Ukrainian leaders and several Western European officials have expressed doubt that Putin is genuinely interested in ending the conflict. They’ve warned that a Russian victory could lead to further military threats against Europe and the NATO alliance.
In remarks made during a visit to China — some of his most conciliatory since the Alaska summit — Putin rejected these warnings as exaggerated claims. He described them as “horror stories” and “hysteria” spread by what he called incompetent individuals trying to portray Russia as a hostile force.
He repeated the argument that Russia’s actions in Ukraine were a response to what he views as Western efforts, aided by NATO, to dominate the post-Soviet region.
“As for Ukraine’s membership of the EU, we have never objected to this,” Putin told Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico at talks in China. “As for NATO, this is another issue… Our position here is well known: we consider this unacceptable for ourselves.”
According to diplomats and officials involved in discussions, creating a security framework for Ukraine—particularly one backed by the United States and key European countries—remains one of the most difficult elements of any peace agreement.
Ukraine has consistently argued that its sovereignty gives it the right to choose its own alliances, and NATO has emphasized that Russia has no authority to block any country from joining the alliance, which was originally established in 1949 to counter Soviet influence.
Putin said that he and Trump discussed Ukraine’s security during their August 15 summit.
“There are options for ensuring Ukraine’s security in the event of an end to the conflict,” Putin said. “And it seems to me that there is an opportunity to find consensus here.”
He also expressed willingness to work with the United States at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which Russian forces took over in March 2022 shortly after the full-scale invasion began.
“We can cooperate with American partners at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant,” Putin said, noting that this issue had been addressed indirectly with U.S. officials and that he would even be open to collaboration with Ukraine at the facility.
