Media: Zelenskyy allowed Ukraine's refusal to join NATO in exchange for security guarantees during talks

Talks between the Ukrainian and American delegations in Berlin, 14 December 2025. Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Telegram

During peace talks with the United States in Berlin, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy admitted the possibility of Ukraine's refusal to join NATO.

Reuters reports this, citing its own sources.

It is noted that during the talks with the American side, the head of state proposed to abandon Ukraine's desire to join NATO in exchange for «security» guarantees from the West. At the same time, Ukraine insists that it will not transfer its territories to the Russian Federation.

«From the very beginning, Ukraine's desire to join NATO was to provide real security guarantees. Some partners from the United States and Europe did not support this direction. Therefore, today, bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the United States, guarantees for us from the United States, similar to Article 5, as well as security guarantees from European partners and other countries — Canada, Japan — are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion. And this is already a compromise on our part», Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a conversation with journalists.

As a reminder, during the talks between the American and Ukrainian delegations held in Berlin on Sunday, the parties were able to make significant progress in discussing key issues.

The focus was on the provisions of the 20-point peace plan, economic initiatives and a number of other topics important for further steps to resolve the war.