Zelenskyy, Biden sign 10-year bilateral security agreement
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. President Joseph Biden have signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy, providing for strengthening Kyiv's defense capabilities.
“President Zelenskyy and I have just now signed that agreement between the United States and Ukraine. Our goal is to strengthen Ukraine’s credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the long term,” Biden said at a press conference with Zelenskyy in Italy.
As he stressed, lasting peace for Ukraine must be backed up by its ability to defend itself now and deter aggression in the future. “The United States is going to help ensure that Ukraine can do both,” he said.
According to the website of the President’s Office of Ukraine, with the signing of this 10-year agreement, the United States and Ukraine will work together to develop and maintain a reliable defense and deterrence capability of Ukraine.
The agreement, in particular, sets out a vision for the future of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which are strong, sustainable and viable. The United States will support the full range of Ukraine's current defense needs now and in the long term, helping Ukraine win the war and strengthening its ability to deter future threats.
The document says that together, the parties, will expand intelligence sharing, enhance interoperability between their Armed Forces in accordance with NATO standards, and work with the allies and partners to position Ukraine as a long-term contributor to European security.
It is noted that the agreement was also signed to support Ukraine's economic recovery and energy security, accelerate its Euro-Atlantic integration by implementing reforms in accordance with its EU accession goals and the NATO reform program.
Among the goals of the document is the achievement of a just peace that would respect Ukraine's rights under international law, rely on broad global support and key principles of the UN Charter, including sovereignty and territorial integrity, and provide for Russia's responsibility for its actions.
In the event of a future armed attack by Russia on Ukraine, consultations will be held by the signatories of the agreement in order to determine appropriate and necessary measures to support Ukraine and impose sanctions on Russia.
It is reported that the United States will continue to work with a broad coalition of allies and partners to continue to impose sanctions on the Russian Federation as long as its aggression against Ukraine continues.
“Today, the United States is sending a powerful signal of its strong support for Ukraine now and into the future. Through this agreement, the United States will work with our partners to strengthen Ukraine’s ability to defend itself now and to deter future aggression,” a text of the document, which is published in full on the website of the President’s Office of Ukraine, reads.