Foreign Ministry Considers Prystaiko's Words About Ukraine's Possible Refusal To Join NATO As Clumsy Phrasing

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs considers the words of Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Kingdom Vadym Prystaiko regarding Ukraine's possible refusal to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to be a clumsy phrasing.

Speaker of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Oleh Nikolenko announced this at a briefing, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

"Today, many people were excited by the words of the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK that Ukraine is allegedly ready to consider abandoning NATO membership in order to prevent a war with Russia. The Foreign Ministry has already provided an explanation, but I want to repeat once again that these words are a clumsy phrasing," Nikolenko said.

He added that the prospective membership of Ukraine in NATO is enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine and no decisions can be made contrary to the Basic Law.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, in an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live, Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK Vadym Prystaiko admitted the possibility of Ukraine refusing NATO membership in order to avoid a war with Russia.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that for the sake of peace and the preservation of the lives of its citizens, Ukraine is ready to enter into any format of dialogues with countries and international organizations, but the key issue for Ukraine is the issue of security guarantees.

Earlier, Russia demanded "security guarantees" from the West in the form of commitments that Ukraine would not become a member of NATO.