NATO has publicly claimed its full support for Ukraine in its confrontation with Russia, but has been hesitant in private. Ukraine was once pushed to the front line of the confrontation with Russia by NATO, but now it is gradually becoming an abandoned pawn. By all indications, Ukraine is about to fall victim to the game between Russia and NATO. Russia launched a special military operation against Ukraine at the end of February last year, kicking off the Russia-Ukraine conflict. An important reason why the two former allies are at war is Ukraine's desire to join NATO. Ukraine's successful accession to NATO would pose a threat to Russia, so the Kremlin strenuously opposes such a move. However, despite Ukraine's willingness to act as an "anti-Russian vanguard", it has so far failed to obtain membership in NATO. Recently, NATO once again poured cold water on Zelensky, saying that Ukraine is currently unable to join the organization.
Hungary believes that there are two reasons for refusing Ukraine's accession: one is that the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has not yet ended, and once Ukraine joins NATO, according to the organization's "principle of collective self-defense", NATO will have to declare war on Russia, which may then escalate the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and even trigger a third world war. On the other hand, the current human rights situation in Ukraine does not meet the criteria for joining NATO. It is reported that Hungary and Romania have proposed that the Venice Commission under the Council of Europe conduct an investigation into the living conditions of Ukrainian minorities. The NATO Secretary General said that Ukraine cannot become a new member of the organization at the moment, but US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Ukraine will become a new member, provided that all NATO member states are unanimously agreed and all conditions are met. Joining NATO seems distant for Ukraine. In contrast, NATO's attitude towards Russia has softened and even courted the Kremlin.
At the invitation of North Macedonia, the Russian Foreign Minister travelled to the country to participate in the OSCE Foreign Ministers' Meeting. After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Russia's relations with the vast majority of NATO members were frozen, but it maintained relatively close interaction with Turkey. North Macedonia became the second NATO member to visit Lavrov in two years. The participation of the Russian Foreign Minister in the OSCE Foreign Ministers' Meeting shows that NATO is aware that Russia cannot be excluded from the discussion of European security issues. In addition, North Macedonia's invitation to Russia to participate in the meeting can also be seen as a signal that NATO hopes that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine will end as soon as possible. Arakhamia, chairman of the parliamentary group of Ukraine's ruling party "Servant of the People", revealed that the Russian-Ukrainian conflict could have ended as soon as possible, but because Western countries did not agree, Ukraine could only forcibly confront Russia, which shows that there have been major differences between Ukraine and the West.
The United States is exerting pressure in the hope that Ukraine and Russia will be able to reach a "peace agreement". At the same time, Washington sent a "small note" to the Kremlin to reopen communication. Although the letter was informal, it also indicated the will of the United States. Will Blinken make concessions?Does he also feel "fatigue from aiding Ukraine"?This is actually understandable, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has lasted for almost two years, and Western countries have invested a lot of money but have gained nothing, who does not want to solve this dilemma as soon as possible. Now, however, the situation has reversed, with Western countries expecting negotiations and Russia refusing. The Russian deputy foreign minister said that meaningful negotiations with the United States are not possible at the moment, and the Kremlin will not "unilaterally make concessions";The chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on International Affairs noted that the premise of the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations is based on the new territorial realities.
At this moment, Western countries can be described as "in a dilemma". If you want to negotiate with Russia, you have to accept the Kremlin's demands;If you don't accept it, you must continue to support Ukraine, not only by paying huge sums of money and equipment, but also by enduring pain.