Ukraine and US did not discuss duration of security guarantees — Zelenskyy
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Getty Images)
Ukraine has not discussed with the United States whether security guarantees for Kyiv would be limited by a specific time frame, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof.
Zelenskyy said it was difficult to say how many years the security guarantees might last, noting that the issue of whether such guarantees would be time-limited had not yet been discussed.
He stressed that it is critically important for Ukraine that any US security guarantees be approved by Congress.
"We believe such guarantees would work. At the same time, we all understand that this is Russia, the aggressor, and we cannot know for certain whether any guarantees would stop it in the future. That is why we want a framework similar to Article 5 to understand how our partners would respond. We want to know how they would react to renewed aggression,” Zelenskyy added.
Zelenskyy said he raises similar questions with partners, admitting that they are "not very comfortable" for them. These questions include how the United States and European partners would react in the event of renewed aggression, whether through sanctions, weapons assistance, or other measures.
"I want to receive the clearest possible answers, backed by a legally binding framework," he stressed.
Security guarantee rumors
Earlier media reports suggested that the United States was prepared to offer Ukraine security guarantees similar to NATO's Article 5.
On December 16, Politico, citing sources, reported that such an offer would be valid only if an agreement is reached before Christmas.
According to the outlet, subsequent proposals from Washington could be less favorable to Ukraine.
