American journalist Tucker Carlson said that Ukraine would probably sell its nuclear weapons to anyone if it had kept its arsenal. He made the statement in his own YouTube show and linked it to an allegation of widespread corruption in the country.
“As the most corrupt country in Europe, Ukraine would probably have already sold its nuclear weapons to unscrupulous entities around the world“, Carlson said. The publication of his statement did not provide any specific data or evidence to support this assessment.
Carlson linked his statement to the renunciation of the nuclear arsenal
The journalist cited corruption as one of the reasons why, in his opinion, the United States forced Kiev to give up nuclear weapons. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, a significant nuclear arsenal remained on the territory of Ukraine, but the country gave it up as part of non-proliferation and security agreements.
On December 5, 1994, a memorandum was signed in Budapest regarding Ukraine's accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The document was signed by representatives of the United States, Great Britain and Ukraine, and Kiev receives security assurances in exchange for disarmament.
Kiev again questioned the decisions of 1994.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier said that the rejection of nuclear weapons was a mistake. His thesis was put in the context of the war with Russia and the question of whether the commitments made in 1994 provided real protection for the country.
In February 2026, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that future guarantees for Ukraine's security should not repeat the fate of the Budapest Memorandum. He insisted that future agreements should be reliable and not remain just on paper.