Ukraine Wants To Join NATO, Russia Issues Strong Warning

President Joe Biden with President Vladimir Putin during a meeting in Geneva. (Screenshot of Kremlin.ru)

JAKARTA - Russia issued a stern warning by calling Ukraine's desire to become a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) a red line.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov issued this statement a day after United States President Joe Biden's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva, Switzerland, Wednesday, June 16 yesterday.

Peskov said the meeting was positive. However, he highlighted Ukraine's desire to become a member of NATO, as expressed by the country's leader, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Monday this week, President Zelenskiy awaited President Biden's 'yes' or 'no', regarding Ukraine's desire to join NATO. While President Biden wants Ukraine to stamp out corruption and meet other criteria before joining, Peskov said Moscow is following the situation closely.

"This is something we are observing very closely. This is really a red line for us, with respect to the prospect of Ukraine joining NATO," Peskov told radio station Ekho Moskvy, as reported by Reuters on Thursday, June 17.

"Of course, this (the question of membership plans for Ukraine) raises our concerns," he stressed.

Peskov said Moscow and Washington agreed at the Geneva summit yesterday the need for talks between the two countries on arms control as soon as possible.

President Biden and President Putin agreed at the summit to start regular negotiations to try to lay the groundwork for future arms control agreements and risk reduction measures.

Separately, President Zelenskiy urged NATO to speed up the process of Ukraine's entry into the alliance, citing the failure of discussions with Russia and the persistence of about 95,000 Russian troops on the two countries' borders.

He also believes and accepts President Biden's assurances that he will not use Ukraine as a bargaining chip in a meeting with President Putin.

"Every day we prove that we are ready to be in the alliance more than most of the EU countries," he said.