Recognizing that returning to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders is not a concession to Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a briefing in Brussels on Feb. 13.
Hegseth made comments on Feb. 12 that Ukraine is unlikely to restore its 2014 borders in any negotiations with Moscow on ending its war. Experts and officials in Ukraine and Europe have criticized Hegseth's comments for undermining Ukraine's leverage before peace talks with Russia have even started.
Russia invaded Ukraine's eastern Donbas region and occupied Crimea in 2014 following the EuroMaidan Revolution that ousted pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych.
"I think realism is an important part of the conversation that hasn't existed enough inside conversations amongst friends, but simply pointing out realism like the borders won't be rolled back to what everybody would like them to be in 2014 is not a concession to Vladimir Putin," Hegseth said.
"It's a recognition of the hard power realities on the ground after a lot of investment and sacrifice first by the Ukrainians and then by allies."
Previously, Hegseth also said the U.S. does not believe that Ukraine's accession to NATO is a "realistic outcome" of negotiations. President Donald Trump soon said that he did not believe Ukraine joining the alliance was practical.
Ukraine officially applied to join NATO in September 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion. While NATO members pledged at the 2024 Washington Summit that Ukraine's path to membership is "irreversible," they have yet to extend a formal invitation.
Russian officials, as well as Western intellectuals with a track record of anti-Ukraine narratives have repeatedly cited Ukraine's potential NATO membership as a justification for the invasion.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has acknowledged opposition to Ukraine's accession from several NATO members, including the U.S., Germany, Hungary, and Slovakia, but expressed hope that Trump could sway support for Kyiv's entry.
Trump held separate calls with Putin and Zelensky on Feb. 12, later claiming both leaders "want to stop the millions of deaths taking place in the war with Russia/Ukraine." Trump called Putin first, saying later that the two leaders agreed that negotiations to end the war in Ukraine will start "immediately."
Kyiv insists that no talks about Ukraine and ending of Russia's all-out war should be held without Ukraine.
Andrea Januta
