Zelenskyy: Revising Europe's security architecture would be dangerous

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Russia wants to change the security framework in Europe, at the very least, and warned that this is dangerous.

Source: Zelenskyy speaking to journalists, as reported by European Pravda, citing Ukrinform

Details: Zelenskyy said that US representatives had raised the changes to Europe's security architecture that Russia seeks during the recent negotiations.

Quote: "In my view, this could be dangerous. I have said this before and warned our team about it too. This should not be the main item on the agenda, and Ukraine should not be initiating it. But I believe the Americans steered the Russians towards this agenda because this is precisely what the Russians want – to revise the security framework in Europe, at the very least."

More details: Zelenskyy said Putin's recent dangerous remarks about borders underscore and confirm his concerns.

"It is a fact that Putin wants to change borders in Europe. I'm certain this is part of his vision for revising security guarantees in Europe. This is dangerous because, in my view, precisely these kinds of things lead to wars or escalation. I contacted the Nordic countries and other European partners and told them they needed to take this very seriously. And all of them are doing exactly that," the president said.

He suggested that changing Europe's security framework was the idea Putin had presented to Joe Biden in 2021. Zelenskyy said Putin's proposal envisaged "a redistribution of forces in Europe and around the world, a reduction or withdrawal of NATO troops, and the withdrawal of US troops".

"Any changes of this kind are very dangerous. First, Russia certainly cannot make decisions for the people of every NATO member state. Second, if Russia wants to remove forces that are there to provide protection, why? I think Putin will talk about Finland and Sweden. I'm certain he will raise the issue of Hungary and the US presence in the Baltic states," Zelenskyy said.

Background:

• The New York Times previously reported that, during talks in Abu Dhabi on ending the war against Ukraine, Russia had again demanded that NATO withdraw its troops to the positions the Alliance held in 1997.
• Republican Senator Tom Cotton, Chair of the US Senate Intelligence Committee, said further negotiations with Russia on ending the war are pointless because the Kremlin's demands for troop withdrawals in NATO countries have shown that Putin has no intention of negotiating peace.

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