The Pentagon chief’s assessment of Kiev’s position is “pretty accurate,” according to the US president
US President Donald Trump has backed his Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s comments that Kiev must accept the reality that returning to pre-2014 borders is not feasible, while NATO membership for Ukraine is off the table.
Speaking ahead of a meeting of the US-led Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels on Wednesday, Hegseth described Kiev’s goal of reclaiming all lost territories as “unrealistic,” and stressed the need for Ukraine to prepare for a negotiated peace, potentially supported by international troops, but without NATO membership as part of any agreement.
On Thursday, Hegseth rejected media accusations that the US was “betraying” Ukraine. “It’s just a cheap political point to say, oh, we’ve left all the negotiating cards off the table by recognizing some realities that exist on the ground,” he said.
When pressed on whether he had asked Hegseth to soften his remarks to preserve “bargaining chips,” Trump told journalists at the White House that he had not.
“Somebody told me to, but I thought his comments were good yesterday. They’re probably good today. They’re a little bit softer, perhaps. But I thought his comments from yesterday were pretty accurate,” Trump stated.
“I don’t see any way that a country in Russia’s position could allow them, just in their position, could allow them to join NATO. I don’t see that happening,” Trump added, blaming the conflict on his predecessor Joe Biden’s support for Ukraine’s NATO ambitions.
Moscow has consistently opposed Ukraine’s NATO aspirations, citing the bloc’s eastward expansion as a threat to national security and describing it as a key factor behind the ongoing conflict with Kiev. The Kremlin has insisted that Ukraine must adopt a neutral status as part of any future peace agreement.
This is not the first time Trump has expressed an understanding of Russia’s position. Speaking to reporters in Florida last month, he said Moscow’s stance on NATO had long been “written in stone.”
He reiterated this view following a lengthy phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday – their first confirmed contact since Trump returned to the White House last month.
Trump also spoke with Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky the same day, after the call with Putin. However, his decision to discuss a potential peace plan directly with the Russian president has reportedly left officials in Kiev and across the EU feeling sidelined.
The US leader announced that he and Putin had agreed to start talks aimed at ending the Ukraine conflict, and indicated that a meeting between the two leaders could take place soon. Following the call, the Kremlin confirmed its readiness for peace talks but stressed that addressing the conflict’s root causes would be essential to any lasting settlement.
