Zelenskyy warns Russia will wage war on NATO, says Putin can't be trusted

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy outlined his vision for ending the war in his country in collaboration with US President Donald Trump. He firmly said that he would never accept a peace deal negotiated solely between the US and Russia without Ukraine’s involvement.

“I will never accept any decisions between the United States and Russia about Ukraine, never,” Zelenskyy said in an interview on NBC News’s Meet the Press, on Friday in Munich, Germany. “This is the war in Ukraine, against us and it’s our human losses.”

Zelenskyy also said Trump had the leverage to push Vladimir Putin into ceasefire negotiations over Ukraine, but warned the Russian leader should never be trusted.

“We believe that Putin will wage war against NATO,” Zelenskyy told the network in an interview aired Sunday.

He suggested that Putin might be anticipating “a weakening of NATO,” which could result from the possibility “that the United States of America will consider withdrawing its military presence from Europe.” He warned that an emboldened Russia would quickly shift into a mode of territorial expansion.

“I don’t know (if) they will want 30 percent of Europe, 50 percent, I don’t know. Nobody knows. But they will have this possibility,” he said.

“We can’t rule out the possibility that America might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it,” Zelensky told the conference.

“I really believe that time has come. The Armed Forces of Europe must be created.”

The push for a joint continental force has been mooted for years without gaining traction and Zelensky’s intervention seems unlikely to shift the balance.

Zelenskyy warns against trusting Putin amid US-Russia talks

Zelenskyy’s latest warnings came as Washington announced a team of senior US officials would meet in Saudi Arabia with counterparts from Moscow and Kyiv.

Trump upended the status quo this week when he announced he was likely to soon meet Putin to start talks to end the conflict.

Zelensky said that in conversations with Trump, the president indicated he believed Putin was for ready for negotiations.

“I said to (Trump), ‘No, (Putin)’s a liar. He doesn’t want any peace.’”

But Zelenskyy added that he thinks Putin is “a little bit scared” of the US president.

“I think that really he can push Putin to peace negotiations,” Zelensky said, adding: “don’t trust him. Don’t trust Putin.”

US officials have sought to assure Ukraine that it will not be left in the cold after three years of battling Russia’s invasion.

After sitting down with Zelensky in Munich, US Vice President JD Vance said the United States was looking for a “durable, lasting peace” that would not lead to further bloodshed in coming years.

But Washington has sent mixed messages to Kyiv, with Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appearing to rule out Ukraine joining NATO or retaking all of its territory.

With inputs from agencies