Ukrainian President Zelensky recently demanded that Kiev either receive NATO membership or nuclear weapons. The Kremlin said the Ukrainian leader’s remarks were “bordering on madness.”
In an interview with Piers Morgan published on Tuesday, Zelensky said, “So let’s do it the following way. Give us back nuclear arms. Give us missile systems. Partners, help us finance the one million [man] Army. Move your contingent on the parts of our state where we want.”
On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to Zelensky’s remarks. “Such statements and remarks, in general, border on madness. There is a non-proliferation regime for nuclear weapons, among other things,” he said. “One hopes that, despite the current generation of European politicians leaving much to be desired in terms of qualifications, some sober understanding of the absurdity and potential danger of discussing such a topic still exists in Europe.”
When Zelensky made a similar demand for nuclear weapons last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin said there would be severe consequences if Kiev went down the path to obtain nuclear weapons. “This is a dangerous provocation,” he said. “Any step in this direction will be met with a corresponding reaction.”
Following Trump winning the November election, the New York Times reported that European officials discussed with the White House giving Ukraine a nuclear weapon to enhance Kiev’s leverage if Trump were to end Washington’s arms shipments.
While the White House quickly dismissed the report, the Kremlin said the discussion of giving Ukraine nuclear weapons constituted “absolutely irresponsible deliberations by people, who probably have a poor understanding… of reality, and who do not feel a shred of responsibility” for potential consequences.
Responding to Zelensky’s remarks on Piers Morgan’s show, Peskov again said the idea of Kiev obtaining a nuke was not based in reality. “Readiness must be built on something; it cannot be based on a legislative ban on such negotiations … So for now, this is nothing more than empty words,” he explained.
On the campaign trail, Trump pledged to bring the war in Ukraine to an end within 24 hours. However, high-level talks between the US and Russia have not taken place. However, Peskov said diplomatic efforts were increasing behind the scenes and Putin was still willing to engage with Kiev.
“There are contacts between individual agencies (of the two countries), and recently, they have intensified, but I cannot provide further details.” He added, “The analysis of our country, repeatedly voiced by President Putin, indicates that Mr. Zelensky has significant de jure legitimacy issues. But despite this, the Russian side remains open to negotiations.”
