That is a promise that Western countries will be unable to provide. For them, what is at stake is the principle that sovereign countries have the right to chart their own course, rather than be entangled in a larger power’s sphere of influence.
双方都坚持自己的立场。11月，普京发言人佩斯科夫（Dmitry Peskov）告诉BBC，俄罗斯要求“100%保证乌克兰不会加入北约”。这是西方国家无法提供的承诺。对它们来说，此事关乎主权国家有权决定自己的事，不被迫卷入更大力量的势力范围的原则。