DISINFO: Ukraine wanted to acquire nuclear weapons because of American pressure
SUMMARY
Ukraine's threat to restart its nuclear programme was one of the main reasons why Russia was forced to launch a military operation at the end of February. Kyiv took this decision after giving in to heavy pressure from its current masters in Washington.
RESPONSE
A claim presented without any evidence or base. In addition, the claim was not counterbalanced or critically challenged in the article. This pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative claims that Ukraine wanted to acquire nuclear weapons due to American pressure, as a way to justify the Russian invasion of the country.
Ukraine is a sovereign country with its own national interests. It is not controlled by any Western government or organisation. Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are respected by almost the whole world with Russia as the key exception. Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity have been violated by continuous acts of aggression by Russian armed forces since 2014 and culminated in an aggressive attack on a neighbouring country on February 24, 2022.
Under the Budapest memorandum in 1994, Ukraine promised to remove all Soviet-era nuclear weapons from its territory, send them to disarmament facilities in Russia, and sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Ukraine kept these promises. In return, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States promised that none of them would ever threaten or use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Ukraine. They specifically pledged they would refrain from making each other's territory the object of military occupation or engage in other uses of force in violation of international law.
The US, the EU and some NATO member states provide Ukraine with military assistance to repel the unprovoked Russian aggression, but they are not involved in fighting. Ukraine receives weapons with the sole aim of restoring its territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. Western instructors are teaching Ukrainian soldiers how to use modern weaponry, but there are no Western troops fighting on the front. NATO as an organisation is not involved in war in Ukraine.
See the EU's response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine here along with EU vs Disinfo's Guide to Deciphering Pro-Kremlin disinformation around Putin's War.