Zelensky responded to a question regarding the potential opportunity window for inviting Ukraine to NATO that may open next week. He reminded that a meeting of NATO foreign ministers will take place in Brussels on December 3–4.
"I don’t know what might happen there. The window [of opportunities] opens and then closes. There have been so many of these windows already. It all depends on our partners. We would like recommendations from the foreign ministers, but we have no illusions. There are still the same skeptical countries, and the US is among those skeptics," he stated.
The President of Ukraine added that he is unaware whether the current US President Joe Biden will recommend inviting Ukraine to NATO, but noted that Secretary of State Antony Blinken is "more positive" about this issue.
"There is also the German side, the Hungarian side. Therefore, only a consolidated signal can be positively perceived by all leaders. This is the first but not the last opportunity for this. We can expect further steps if there is political will. The current US administration has two months, and they have influence over the few European skeptics regarding our future," Zelensky continued.
He emphasized that he does not see any risks in recommending the invitation of Ukraine to NATO. According to the president, most NATO countries do not perceive these risks either.
"This is not even an invitation. It is a recommendation from the foreign ministers to the leaders regarding a future invitation for Ukraine to NATO," Zelensky clarified.
Commenting on reports from Western media about which parts of the territory might fall under the "NATO umbrella," he stressed that Ukraine will never legally recognize any occupation of its lands by Russia.
"There cannot be an invitation to NATO for part of Ukraine's territory. That would automatically acknowledge that all other territories are not only in danger but also that the remaining territories are not Ukrainian. Therefore, Ukraine will never agree to this. If there is an invitation, it will only be for all territories in full. But we understand that the fifth amendment (Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which provides for collective defense. – "GORDON"), when you are a NATO member, cannot be applied during wartime across all of Ukraine, because countries are against the risks of being drawn into war," he added.