President Donald Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin directly as his Defense Secretary said NATO membership for Ukraine was unrealistic.

Nato chief Mark Rutte, the head of the 32-nation defence bloc Nato, on Thursday insisted that Ukraine must be closely involved in any peace talks. His comments, which echoed statements from a meeting of European foreign ministers,

Several NATO allies are insisting that Ukraine and Europe must not be cut out of any peace negotiations, after U.S. President Donald Trump signaled that he would hold talks soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Right now, that is still on the table," said John Coale, President Donald Trump's deputy Ukraine envoy, when asked whether the U.S. had ruled out possible NATO membership for Ukraine. Speaking in an interview with Reuters in Munich,

The mutual-defense alliance has been central to Ukraine’s war against Russia, but the future is uncertain with President Trump back in office.

The United States has never seen Ukraine as a NATO member and has never wanted the country in the alliance. This is not just President Donald Trump's position but US policy in general, stated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the Munich Security Conference.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that the US had never seen Ukraine as a NATO member, following the latest statements from Washington that Kiev joining the defence alliance would be "unrealistic.