Membership in NATO will become real if, thanks to the counteroffensive, Ukraine returns Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, and the effectiveness of any agreements with Russia will depend on Ukraine's membership in the Alliance, Stanford University Professor Francis Fukuyama said.

“Under the current circumstances, peace talks and a temporary ceasefire are very negative for Ukraine, as this would leave Russia in control of Donbas, Crimea and the southern coast of Ukraine,” he said in a video message to the participants of the 15th annual Kyiv Security Forum, founded by the Open Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation.

The professor also noted that as long as Vladimir Putin is in power, any “peace agreements” simply allow Russia “to reinforce its troops to resume the war at a later stage.”

He believes that only Ukraine's membership in NATO and the guarantees provided for in Article 5 can prevent a new war by Russia in the future.

“NATO membership becomes a reality if, through its counteroffensive, Ukraine regains the Kherson and Zaporizhia regions on the Black Sea coast,” said Professor at Stanford University.

“Fearing slow strangulating blockade of Crimea, Putin may decide to end attacking Ukraine, unblock Ukrainian ports on a long-term basis, and stop terrorist missile attacks of Ukrainian cities,” he added.

Fukuyama stressed that the effectiveness of any agreements with Russia will depend on Ukraine's membership in NATO.

“Any NATO member country doubting this should honestly admit that any peace arrangement possible in the coming years will be just another short-term ceasefire and an opportunity for Russia to reinforce, rebuild its armed forces and then resume the war,” he summarized.

The 15th annual Kyiv Security Forum "For Our and Your Freedom" was held on May 25-26.