RT said that this statement was made after US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and President Donald Trump both emphasized that Ukraine's entry into NATO was not in the near future.
Last week, Minister Hegseth stressed that Ukraine's goal of joining NATO and reclaiming all its territories that have been annexed to Russia is "unrealistic". Mr. Trump later affirmed that this assessment was quite accurate.
Russia has repeatedly called NATO's expansion to its borders a national security threat and considered Kiev's ambition to join NATO one of the main factors behind the ongoing conflict.
Mr Zelensky criticized the Trump administration for ringing up important demands right before the peace talks took place, while emphasizing that Washington could not simply eliminate Ukraines aspiration to join NATO from the negotiations. No one wants to see a second Afghanistan, he said in an interview with German TV channel ARD.
Mr Zelensky's statement was made right before a meeting between Russian and US delegations in Saudi Arabia on February 18, where the two sides discussed the possibility of holding a direct dialogue between President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin.
The withdrawal from Afghanistan was planned by Trump during his first term, but was carried out by his successor Joe Biden in 2021.
The chaotic and hasty withdrawal led to a rapid collapse of the US-backed government in Kabul and a quick takeover by the Taliban.
Mr Zelensky stressed that the US should not repeat that mistake in Ukraine.
