Zelenskyy says Ukraine trusts US security guarantees; NATO countries trust one another
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine trusts security guarantees from the United States, calling them "strong."
"They have the strongest security guarantees, which must be signed by the President of the United States and legally set by the U.S. Congress. That is why we trust such a framework; these are strong security guarantees," Zelenskyy said in response to a question from journalists.
He added that NATO countries also trust one another, while noting that there has not yet been an opportunity to test whether collective defence would work. "It is difficult to say: do NATO countries, for example, trust one another if Russia attacks one of the NATO countries? They do trust one another. And will there be assistance? We will see. No one has tested it. But by and large, everyone trusts and believes that NATO will stand up for a member state regardless of its size and status – nuclear or non-nuclear – and regardless of where it is geographically located, closer to Russia or farther away. If a state is a NATO member and there is aggression against its territory, there will be a response – everyone trusts this," the president said.
According to him, the same situation applies to security guarantees from the United States. "The same applies here. There will be security guarantees backed by an appropriate vote. And we will believe that what is written there will be implemented in the event of a violation of the agreement," Zelenskyy said.
Asked whether the United States is ready to take incentivising steps in the form of signing security guarantees for Ukraine in order to end the war by June of this year, the president replied: "The American side has said that one of the possibilities is that all agreements would be signed at approximately the same time. I am not saying that it would be at exactly the same moment, but they are talking about the same timeframe."
At the same time, when asked whether the U.S. and Russian sides would simultaneously sign what they agree on, Zelenskyy said: "I don't know. I would very much like us to first sign the security guarantees and then sign the other documents. In my view, that would be a good signal. This is not even a matter of fairness, but a matter of trust. Greater trust in partners if guarantees come first and everything else afterward."
He is convinced that the Russians do not want Ukraine "to sign anything with the United States." "But we are not discussing that. It will happen regardless of who likes it and who does not. Ukraine will receive security guarantees. Without security guarantees, there can be no end to the war. This is an absolutely one-hundred-percent premise. Everyone understands this. For the war to end, security is needed," the Ukrainian president said.
Regarding security guarantees from the EU, he noted that these are enshrined in a 20-point draft agreement. "Then there must already be an agreement with the EU and a roadmap of actions that Ukraine must carry out very quickly in order to obtain a fast track and for this to truly work as a security guarantee for Ukraine and for all of Europe, and not be violated by Russia."
Zelenskyy said Ukraine will be technically ready to join the EU by 2027, and he insists that the United States take on the obligation to work directly with certain EU members so that they do not block Ukraine's European integration.
"The Americans say that Russia will not oppose Ukraine's accession to the EU. This is enshrined in the 20-point plan. And I, as President of Ukraine, say that I do not believe Russia will not try to stop our movement toward the EU. Because there is a practice of doing this not with one's own hands, but through other actors – and we all understand who those actors are. That is why we say: name a date. Why a specific date? Because under a date there will be the signatures of Ukraine, Europe, the United States and Russia. This is a 20-point plan, with four signatories. Europe signs. And the United States of America takes on the obligation that it is the guarantor that no one will block it. For example, when we talk about whether the United States will work politically with certain European actors so that they do not block it – yes, they take on this responsibility. And there will be someone from the EU who will represent them at the signing," he said.