Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced that an agreement on a security guarantee from Washington is “essentially ready” to be finalised by US President Donald Trump, following several days of negotiations in Paris.
In a post on X on Thursday, Zelenskyy described the document as a cornerstone of any settlement to end the war, noting it would ensure Washington and other Western allies support Ukraine if Russia launched another invasion.
“The bilateral document on security guarantees for Ukraine is now essentially ready for finalisation at the highest level with the president,” he said.
Zelenskyy explained that the Paris talks, involving US and European teams, had tackled “complex issues” within the framework under discussion to end the nearly four-year conflict, with the Ukrainian delegation presenting possible solutions.
“We understand that the American side will engage with Russia, and we expect feedback on whether the aggressor is genuinely willing to end the war,” he added.
Washington, which earlier this week endorsed the idea of providing security guarantees for Ukraine for the first time, is expected to present any agreement reached with Kyiv to Moscow in its bid to broker peace.
Kyiv insists that legally binding assurances from allies are crucial to deter future Russian aggression if a ceasefire is achieved. However, details of the guarantees and how allies would respond remain undisclosed. Zelenskyy said earlier this week he had yet to receive an “unequivocal” answer on what they would do if Russia attacked again.
Meanwhile, Russia has rejected a proposal emerging from the Paris talks for European peacekeepers to be deployed to Ukraine, branding it “militaristic” and warning they would be treated as “legitimate military targets.”
On Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed a declaration of intent with Zelenskyy in Paris, outlining a framework for troops from their countries to be deployed after a ceasefire with Russia.
In its first response, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova denounced the plan as “dangerous” and “destructive,” dampening hopes it could advance peace efforts.
“The new militarist declarations of the so-called Coalition of the Willing and the Kyiv regime together form a genuine ‘axis of war’,” Zakharova said.
“All such units and facilities will be considered legitimate military targets for the Russian Armed Forces,” she added, repeating a threat previously made by President Vladimir Putin.
Moscow has consistently warned it will not accept NATO members sending peacekeeping troops to Ukraine.
SOURCE: Aljazeera
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