Ukraine's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi has recalled that Russia’s leadership once publicly supported NATO’s eastward enlargement – despite now using it as a justification for aggression against Ukraine.

Source: Tykhyi on X (Twitter), as reported by European Pravda

Details: Tykhyi recalled former NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer’s 2004 visit to Moscow, where he was received by Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.

Quote:"Putin welcomes NATO Secretary-General to Moscow, declaring: 'Every country has the right to choose the option that it considers most effective for ensuring its own security'. He also hoped NATO enlargement would 'strengthen trust in Europe and all over the world'.

Putin is a pathological liar attempting to rewrite history and justify his imperial war of conquest."

Russian lies about NATO enlargement as the “reason” for its aggression against Ukraine don’t hold water. Especially when confronted with Putin’s own words from 2004. The Kremlin archives expose the hypocrisy.

April 8, 2004. Putin welcomes NATO Secretary-General to Moscow,… pic.twitter.com/ml5Qq4m2sH

— Heorhii Tykhyi (@SpoxUkraineMFA) June 29, 2025

Tykhyi also pointed out that Russia’s claims about alleged NATO promises in 1990 not to expand eastward have been repeatedly debunked – including by then-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev himself.

Quote: "The truth is crystal clear: NATO enlargement has never posed a real threat to Russia. It only denied Moscow the ability to conquer sovereign European nations. This is what Putin is really protesting."

Background:

• Russia recently stated that NATO’s decision to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP would not impact its own security.
• Earlier this week, at a summit in The Hague supported by US President Donald Trump, NATO leaders reaffirmed that Russia remains a shared threat to the Alliance.

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