President Volodymyr Zelensky signalled that Ukraine could accept security guarantees from the US and Europe as a way to prevent future Russian aggression, and substitute for its long-term goal of joining Nato.
Ukraine’s leader met at Germany’s Federal Chancellery in Berlin on Sunday with a US delegation led by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, along with several national security advisers from Europe.
A lot of progress was made during a meeting, which lasted more than five hours and included in-depth discussions about a 20-point peace plan, economic agendas and other matters, according to a statement from the US delegation. Talks will resume on Monday, it said.
Kyiv, which for years has seen membership in the alliance as a way to ensure its future security, has altered its rhetoric amid the continued reluctance of the US and some European partners and as Washington presses efforts to bring the almost four-year-old war to an end.
Bilateral security agreements between Ukraine and the US that function similarly to Nato’s Article 5, as well as guarantees from Europe and other countries, potentially including Canada and Japan, could prevent “another coming of Russian aggression”, Zelensky told reporters.
“The key thing is that all the steps we agree on with partners must work in practice to deliver guaranteed security,” Zelensky said separately on X. “Only reliable guarantees can deliver peace.”