Some NATO members tell Ukraine to consider 'peace talks' despite giving combat weapons to Kyiv: Report

Prominent European members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) apparently advocated a defence pact with war-ravaged Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

On the completion of one year of the Russia-Ukraine war, the report highlighted the attempts by French and German leaders as they told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that he needs to consider peace talks later this year.

The NATO allies have tried to present a united front during the war but such reports and statements have also shown disagreements and differences. The report also underlines doubts and growing concerns raised by a few Western partners over Kyiv's ability to reconquer all its territory.

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The report stated that government officials from Germany, France and Britain said that these nations see stronger ties between NATO and Ukraine, which is a way to encourage Kyiv to start peace talks with Russia despite Moscow's ongoing efforts to occupy Ukrainian territory.

The West is mulling over supplying long-range missiles to Ukraine to help in its fight against Russia by hitting deep inside Russian territories. The war-torn nation has also urged for fighter jets.

Recently, the Ukrainian allies agreed to send battle tanks after delays, with Poland delivering the first Leopard 2 battle tanks on Friday, the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion.

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A unified West for Ukraine?

Last week, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on Saturday (February 18) as the leaders gathered in Germany to attend the annual Munich Security Conference.

He also said Western allies should consider how to ensure that Russia pays towards the reconstruction of Ukraine once the war has ended, and said the global community needed to recognize that a new framework was required to maintain long-term security.

Though the UK so far refused to send fighter jets, but Sunak said last week that Britain could help in other ways as he said that the nation would help other countries which were willing to send aircraft to Ukraine.

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Sunak also referred to the post-war scenario as he said that Western allies should consider how to ensure that Russia pays towards the reconstruction of Ukraine once the war has ended.

He said that from human rights to "reckless" nuclear threats, from Georgia to Moldova, Russia has committed "violation after violation" against countries outside the collective security of NATO.

The report mentioned Sunak's stance as he called for an agreement to give Ukraine access to advanced military equipment to defend itself once the war ends. He further noted that the plan should be on the agenda for NATO's annual meeting in July.

As per the report, the French, German and British officials said that all three governments see it as a way to boost Ukrainian confidence and give the government there an incentive to start talks with Russia.

However, the report mentioned that the officials carefully said that it's entirely up to Ukraine to decide when and under what conditions it will start the peace talks.

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