Former Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi said NATO must fundamentally rethink how it fights wars, arguing that Russia has already found ways to counter nearly every major Western weapon used by Ukraine. Speaking to reporters in Kyiv on Wednesday, Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK sought to clarify controversial remarks made earlier this week suggesting Ukraine would “never” join the alliance.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Zaluzhnyi insisted he remains a strong supporter of NATO, recalling that he championed the Armed Forces of Ukraine’s transition to NATO standards as early as 2019 despite facing fierce criticism. However, he said Russia’s full-scale invasion has exposed the alliance’s shortcomings. “Scientific and technological progress is moving forward. In 2026, Ukraine used virtually every type of weapon – except Tomahawk missiles, nuclear weapons, aircraft carriers and F-35s that are in NATO service,” Zaluzhnyi said. “The resource has been exhausted. Russia has found countermeasures to all of this.” He argued that the war has transformed Ukraine’s military beyond the alliance’s current doctrine, forcing NATO to modernize. “The Armed Forces of Ukraine have reached a completely different level. NATO has no choice but to move to entirely new standards,” he said. “Only then will NATO be ready for Ukraine’s accession.” Zaluzhnyi also repeated his call for creating “an entirely new security bloc,” likely centered on Europe, to meet the demands of modern warfare.