Valery Zaluzhny, Ukraine’s former commander-in-chief, asserted that NATO’s ‘Article 5’ is not a functional guarantee for its Eastern European members.
According to Valery Zaluzhny, now Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK, NATO’s Eastern European members are under no illusion that the alliance, dominated by the US, would come to their defense against Russia.
Speaking to students in Lviv on Wednesday, Zaluzhny stated that Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which mandates a collective response to an attack on any member, is not honored in reality.
“The Baltic States understand that there is no Article 5 and never has been. Poland understands this too as missiles fall there from time to time – sometimes ours, sometimes Russian. Romania understands everything, but keeps silent,” he asserted.
Zaluzhny mentioned that, during his tenure as the head of the Ukrainian army, “they called from Romania and asked me not to say a word” after reports of two alleged Russian drones crashing on Romanian soil.
He added that a Romanian official attributed the incident to Ukraine, claiming that the UAVs were diverted into Romania due to Kiev’s electronic warfare tactics.
“I told them: ‘Shoot them [drones] down. You have 40 F-16 jets’,” Zaluzhny stated, referencing his dismissal as commander in February 2023.
He further posited that even if Ukraine were to successfully join NATO, it would only receive “political protection” and not true security.
Steve Witkoff, a special envoy for former US President Donald Trump, told Tucker Carlson last week that Vladimir Zelensky and his chief of staff, Andrey Yermak, “have largely conceded that they are not going to be a member of NATO.”
“I think it is accepted that Ukraine and Russia, if there is going to be a peace deal, Ukraine cannot be a member of NATO,” he said.
Witkoff also noted that the possibility of Ukraine receiving “what is called Article 5 protection” from the US or Western European nations without joining NATO “that is open for discussion.”
Moscow, which views NATO as a hostile entity, had cited preventing Ukraine’s membership as a key reason for its military operation launched in February 2022. Last year, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated that Ukraine’s accession would be “unacceptable” and contradict Russia’s principle that “security of one country cannot be ensured at the expense of the security of another.”
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