"Salad of Words": An expert clarifies why Trump's claim that Biden pushed Ukraine toward NATO is actually false.

The elected President of the United States, Donald Trump, accused U.S. President Joe Biden on January 7 of initiating Russia's war against Ukraine.

Trump stated that Biden's support for Ukraine's NATO membership led to the Russian invasion.

"I could understand their (the Russians') feelings," he said, claiming that NATO could have "been standing at their doorstep."

Trump's statements are far from reality, as Biden has never officially supported Ukraine's aspirations to join NATO, and the White House has, on the contrary, been a major obstacle to Kyiv receiving an official invitation.

"It’s entirely possible that in two days Trump will say something completely different, or Putin will anger him," said Kyiv Independent Aaron Burnett, a senior fellow at the Democratic Strategy Initiative.

"Trump's statements are just a salad of words," he added.

Burnett explains that the doors to Ukraine's NATO membership were never truly opened and now seem to be closing completely.

Over the years of independence, Ukraine has made several attempts to join the alliance, which was considered the only real guarantee of the country's security.

In 2008, Ukraine submitted an official application for a NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP). The application was approved by U.S. President George Bush, a Republican, who was a key supporter of Ukraine's NATO membership.

The main opponents were Germany and France, and despite the U.S. attempting to persuade German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy to invite Kyiv, they did not do so.

When Democrats took over the White House in January 2009, the issue of Ukraine's NATO membership was removed from consideration, as neither President Barack Obama nor his Vice President Biden supported Ukraine's aspirations.

During the pro-Russian presidency of Viktor Yanukovych, who ruled Ukraine from 2010 to 2014, the commission for preparing the country for NATO membership and the National Center for Euro-Atlantic Integration were dissolved.

According to surveys in Ukraine, in 2014 slightly over 20% of the population supported joining NATO.

After Russia's occupation of Crimea and the eastern parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, more than 50% of Ukrainians stated they would vote in favor of NATO membership.

Following Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, the number of Ukrainians supporting NATO membership surged to over 80%.

In September 2022, Kyiv officially applied to join the Alliance.

The U.S. under Biden did not support Ukraine's request.

"First and foremost, Biden and (German Chancellor) Olaf Scholz stalled any invitation for Ukraine to NATO during the Vilnius summit, for example. When other countries, especially Central and Eastern Europe, Britain, and France were much more favorable about it," said Burnett.

The potential accession of Ukraine to NATO is not the reason for Russia's attack, emphasized Burnett, adding that Putin has repeatedly hinted that he does not recognize Ukraine as a sovereign state.

"Putin invaded Ukraine because he does not see it as a state, does not believe it has the right to exist as a state, and he is neo-imperialist," he explained.

President Volodymyr Zelensky stated on January 8 that the lack of NATO membership and specific security guarantees contributed to Russia's decision to start a full-scale invasion.

"Putin realized that no one would defend Ukraine. He thought he could destroy us, but the Ukrainian army proved him wrong," Zelensky said.

According to the expert, several factors will influence Ukraine's future NATO membership. Trump’s decisions may be swayed by Republicans who support Ukraine. Much will depend on Europe, on how much its countries are willing to spend on their defense, and whether Washington will be satisfied with that.

At this moment, it will be difficult to predict any scenario.

"Trump is unpredictable," said Burnett. "If someone tells you they know what Trump is going to do, they are lying."

Background. Recall that Trump stated he "understands Russia's feelings regarding NATO" and is no longer planning to end the war "in 24 hours." Now Trump claims that it will take six months to achieve a ceasefire.

During an interview with Lex Friedman, Zelensky recounted how in 2008 Merkel did not allow Ukraine to join NATO. According to him, then-President Bush Jr. offered to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the Alliance.