Zelensky Joke About Giving up Belgorod to Join NATO Viewed 1M Times

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this weekend dismissed suggestions that Kyiv might surrender certain territories to Russia in exchange for future NATO membership. He joked that Ukraine would instead be willing to give up control of a Russian border region repeatedly attacked by Kyiv-aligned forces.

"We are ready to exchange Belgorod for our membership in NATO," the president said at a press conference in Denmark. He was on a visit to inspect Danish F-16 fighter jets that may soon be given over to Ukrainian pilots in their ongoing fight against Russia's full-scale invasion. Zelensky also went to the Netherlands this weekend, which is playing a key role in the NATO group pushing to deliver F-16s.

Ukrainian officials have stressed throughout the war that they have no interest in invading and occupying Russian regions. However, pro-Kyiv Russian fighters have launched several cross-border raids, including into Belgorod. Such operations saw Ukraine-aligned units temporarily occupy several settlements and force large-scale evacuations.

On Monday, Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported that three aerial targets were shot down over the region on Sunday night. Newsweek has contacted the Russian Foreign Ministry by email to request comment on the president's remarks.

Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly rejected suggestions that Kyiv might surrender occupied land in exchange for a peace deal with Moscow. Zelensky and his top officials have said they intend to liberate all Ukrainian land per the country's 1991 borders, regardless of Western skepticism about whether such success is possible.

The question put to Zelensky during his press conference in Denmark was related to recent comments by Stian Jenssen, the director of NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg's private office. He last week acknowledged the possibility of Ukraine ceding territory to Russia in exchange for accession to NATO.

Jenssen said any such decision would be left up to Ukraine, but his remarks nonetheless made headlines worldwide and infuriated Kyiv.

"Trading territory for a NATO umbrella? It is ridiculous," Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Zelensky's office, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine's Foreign Ministry, said it was completely unacceptable to suggest such a deal.

Zelensky's more jovial response quickly went viral, and as of Monday morning, had amassed more than 1 million views across multiple social-media accounts and platforms.

The thorny question of Ukrainian NATO membership remains unresolved. However, Zelensky did secure commitments from the Netherlands and Denmark to supply long-desired F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv, as it seeks solutions to continued Russian bombardment of major cities and an increasingly static front line.

Zelensky also visited Sweden, where he discussed the possibility of receiving Gripen fighter jets.

Zelensky said the Netherlands had agreed to send "42 great combat aircraft" to Ukraine, with Denmark providing an additional 19. It remains unclear when the aircraft will arrive in-theater, as Ukrainian pilots, mechanics, and ground crews all still need to be trained. New infrastructure to house, protect, and maintain the aircraft also must be installed.

Andriy Yermak, the head of Zelensky's office, said the weekend announcements were the results of many months of work. Yermak wrote on Telegram: "It was not always public, and not everything can be told now. It was a truly multi-level process with our partners, the result of which is a significant number of F-16s for Ukraine."

The proposed delivery of F-16s to Ukraine had appeared to have stalled in recent weeks, with fresh delays to planned training for Ukrainian pilots. However, last week, the campaign was boosted by U.S. approval for European allies to re-export the American-made fighters to Ukraine.

"I am writing to express the United States' full support for both the transfer of F-16 fighter aircraft to Ukraine and for the training of Ukrainian pilots by qualified F-16 instructors," Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote in a letter sent last week. "It remains critical that Ukraine is able to defend itself against ongoing Russian aggression and violation of its sovereignty."

Dutch Defense minister Kajsa Ollongren later welcomed the decision. She said it would allow the coalition pushing to transfer the jets "to follow through on the training of Ukrainian pilots." Danish Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen, meanwhile, said sending the aircraft is a natural next step after the planned training program is completed.