Kaja Kallas rejects Trump's intentions to close NATO's door to Ukraine

(Patria) - The European Union's top diplomat said on Thursday that NATO offered the best security guarantee for Ukraine, accusing United States President Donald Trump of falling for the Russian narrative with the idea of closing the door.

In an interview with AFP about a visit to Washington, Kaja Kallas also warned that Europeans would not be able to help in a final ceasefire agreement in Ukraine's three-year conflict with Russia unless they were included by Trump, who directly addressed Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Kallas, the former prime minister of Estonia – a country on the front line with Russia, said NATO countries had never attacked Russia, which instead "feared democracy".

"Why are we in NATO? It is because we fear Russia. And the only thing that really works, the only security guarantee that works, is the NATO umbrella," she said.

Russia cited Ukraine's potential NATO membership as a reason for its invasion three years ago. Putin has since questioned Ukraine's historical legitimacy as a country separate from Russia.

Trump, who broke Putin's isolation with a phone call earlier this month, said on Wednesday that Ukraine could "forget" about joining NATO in any settlement, explaining: "I think that's probably why the whole thing started."

"These accusations are completely untrue," Kallas said when asked about Trump's remarks. "It is a Russian narrative that we should not buy."

"My question is why should we give Russia what they want on top of what they have already done – invaded Ukraine, annexed territory, occupied territory, and now we are offering something on top of that," she said. "Imagine here in America, after September 11, you would sit down with Osama bin Laden and say, 'OK, what else do you want?' I mean, that's unthinkable."

Russia has insisted that the United States promised at the end of the Cold War not to expand NATO. Some US diplomats from that era deny this, although some have also warned that Ukraine's NATO membership would be a red line for Moscow.

Trump has dismissed NATO, saying it is unfair that the United States provides security for wealthy allies who largely pay less for defense relative to the size of their economies.

Trump, who is expected to sign an agreement today with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to secure much of Ukraine's mineral wealth, has refused to offer US security guarantees to Kyiv and said it is up to the Europeans.

Kallas said that in any deal about Ukraine, "Europeans must be included".

"We must be part of these discussions. I don't think we can offer anything without it."
Trump, in his White House address on Wednesday, also said the European Union was set to "rip off the United States" and that he planned tariffs to close the trade deficit.

Kallas called Trump's statements "surprising" and said the two sides had long shared common values.

Kallas said Europe "will not be able to fill the void that America leaves", but that the world "is looking at us" to see what more it can offer.

"I feel that we also need to increase our geopolitical power," Kallas said.

"If America turns inward, Europe turns outward."