Ukraine rejects report on weapons of mass destruction

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry (MFA) has poured cold water on reports that the country is planning to build weapons of mass destruction.

Heorhii Tykhyi, a spokesman for the ministry, said in a statement released Thursday that the Foreign Ministry is refuting a recent report by German tabloid BILD that claimed Kiev was moving closer to plans to build a nuclear bomb. The allegations were made public in a report by BILD published earlier in the day, and the media quoted an unnamed senior Ukrainian official who “specializes in arms procurement.”

Tykhyi stressed in his statement that Ukraine remains “a committed party” to the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Kiev agreed to reduce its nuclear weapons stockpile in exchange for security assurances from the United States, the United Kingdom and Russia.

He added that Ukraine, “which has made the greatest contribution in history to world peace, security and nuclear non-proliferation, is now facing nuclear blackmail from the terrorist state of Russia.” Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that He would consider using nuclear weapons in his invasion of Ukraine if other countries got involved in the war.

“Moscow not only resorts to irresponsible and dangerous rhetoric on the issue of weapons of mass destruction, but also creates unacceptable threats to nuclear facilities on the territory of Ukraine… We call on the international community to increase pressure on Moscow to prevent its implementation.” aggressive plans,” Tykhyi said.

The Ukrainian president’s communications adviser, Dmytro Lytvyn, also rejected the BILD report in a statement to Interfax Ukraine, telling the medium: “Yes, this is not the first time that Bild has spread something that has no connection to reality, but plays into the hands of Russian propaganda.”

Newsweek reached out to the Russian Foreign Ministry via email on Thursday seeking comment.

The State Department’s statement comes on the same day that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared to give the NATO alliance an ultimatum, saying at the European Council summit in Brussels that he had told former President Donald Trump that Kiev would either ” join some king of the alliance” or be “forced to pursue nuclear weapons.”

Zelensky walked back his comments during a news conference later in the day with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, saying on Thursday that Ukraine was not “building nuclear weapons.”

“What I meant is that there is no stronger security guarantee for us today other than NATO membership,” Zelensky added, according to Politico’s report on the matter.

NATO has said it is committed to Ukraine’s future in the alliance, although Rutte stopped short of supporting Ukraine’s request for an “accelerated” membership application during Thursday’s press conference.

Zelensky also announced his long-awaited “victory plan” this week, outlining Kiev’s goals to join NATO and secure further support from its Western allies to end its war with Russia. Presenting the plan to the Ukrainian parliament on Thursday, Zelensky said the plan could end the war by next year.