“You can forget about (NATO membership). That’s probably the reason the whole thing started,” Trump said during a White House cabinet meeting when asked what concessions Ukraine should make in a settlement.
Trump has repeatedly blamed President Joe Biden for provoking Russia’s full-scale invasion by supporting Ukraine’s NATO aspirations. Russian propaganda often cites Ukraine’s potential alliance membership as a justification for the war.
Ukraine officially applied to join NATO in September 2022. While the alliance declared in 2024 that Ukraine’s path to membership is “irreversible,” no formal invitation has been extended.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has called NATO membership the “cheapest” possible security guarantee for Ukraine.
Asked whether sanctions relief for Russia would be part of peace negotiations, Trump said, “No. I want to see if we make a deal (to end Russia’s war against Ukraine) first.”
Washington has imposed multiple rounds of sanctions on Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion, targeting banks, energy exports, and dual-use goods.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio previously indicated that sanctions relief could be part of negotiations but insisted the U.S. would maintain restrictions at least until an agreement is reached.
Trump’s comments come as Zelensky prepares to visit Washington on Feb. 28 to sign a minerals agreement with the U.S.
Trump stressed that the U.S will not give Ukraine significant security guarantees.
“I’m not going to make security guarantees beyond very much,” Trump said on Wednesday, adding, “We’re going to have Europe do that.”
Zelensky had earlier said that a “preliminary” economic agreement between Ukraine and the US was ready but noted that the deal did not yet include any US security guarantees that Kyiv views as vital to ending the war with Russia.
A full agreement could hinge on the outcome of talks with Trump later this week in Washington, Zelensky told a news conference in Kyiv.
“This deal could be a great success or it could pass quietly. And the big success depends on our conversation with President Trump,” he added.
According to media reports, the agreement will grant the US access to critical minerals in Ukraine in compensation for US assistance in repelling Russia’s full-scale invasion that began in February 2022.
The White House has applied heavy pressure on Kyiv to allow the US access to its vast reserves of minerals that are used in the aerospace, defence and nuclear industries.
The deal is central to Ukrainian attempts to ensure strong support from Trump as he seeks a quick end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian president told reporters in Kyiv that the framework economic agreement with the US is a first step towards a full agreement that would be subject to ratification by Ukraine’s parliament.
The planned visit comes after a dramatic week in which the two leaders exchanged hostile remarks, with Trump calling Zelensky a “dictator”.
Trump has cast the deal as a repayment for billions of dollars in aid to Kyiv during the war.
He announced Zelensky’s visit on Wednesday at the start of the first US Cabinet meeting of his second term, hailing the deal as “a very big agreement”.
“The previous administration put us in a very bad position, but we’ve been able to make a deal where we’re going to get the money back and a lot of money in the future,” Trump stated.
