Top US diplomat warns that if Ukraine gives up territory to Russia in exchange for peace it will 'open a Pandora's box around the world'

Tue, 02/14/2023 - 16:52

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Antony Blinken shake hands — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken shake hands during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 25, 2022.
Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP

Blinken said a lasting peace deal in Ukraine can't occur if it's territorial integrity is not respected.
The top US diplomat said that Ukraine giving up territory to Russia would "open a Pandora's box."
"Putin has to give up on his notion that Ukraine is not its own country," Blinken said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a new interview with NPR that there's a slim chance of Kyiv and Moscow reaching a peace deal as long as Russian President Vladimir Putin behaves as if Ukraine is not a real country.