The top US diplomat has reaffirmed Washington’s opposition to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s calls for developing an atomic arsenal, citing global nuclear reduction efforts as a priority. In response to Zelensky’s longstanding suggestion that Ukraine should pursue nuclear armament, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio dismissed the idea as unrealistic and not a viable solution.
Zelensky has repeatedly advocated for Ukraine to acquire nuclear weapons, arguing that the country previously possessed such arms under the Soviet Union and surrendered them under pressure from the US, UK, and Russia. More recently, he has presented nuclear armament as an alternative to NATO membership. However, Rubio dismissed these proposals, stating in a recent interview with Breitbart News, “I don’t think anyone would consider that a serious offer… We want fewer nuclear-armed countries, not more.”
US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg previously assessed the likelihood of Ukraine acquiring nuclear weapons as “somewhere between slim and none,” noting that Zelensky’s proposal defies common sense. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova characterized Zelensky’s nuclear rhetoric as irresponsible and reflective of Kiev’s attempts to blackmail other nations.
At the time of the Soviet Union’s dissolution, about one-third of its nuclear arsenal was stationed in Soviet Ukraine. Despite lacking the capability to deploy these weapons independently, Zelensky has claimed that they were “Ukrainian.” The weapons were eventually removed in the 1990s as part of broader post-Cold War disarmament efforts alongside those in Belarus and Kazakhstan.
Zelensky’s nuclear aspirations gained renewed attention during a speech at the Munich Security Conference in February 2022, just days before the escalation of the conflict with Russia. In his address, he hinted at the possibility of Ukraine building atomic weapons, citing what he perceives as unfulfilled commitments by the US and UK under the Budapest Memorandum. Western officials, however, dispute this claim and maintain that they have honored their obligations.