Ukraine’s allies have agreed to provide the country with multi-layered international defence guarantees as part of a proposal to end Russia’s nearly four-year-old invasion. Leaders from European countries, Canada, the US, and officials from the European Union and NATO met in Paris on Tuesday to discuss providing Kyiv’s forces with equipment, training, and support to deter future Russian attacks.
The size of the supporting forces was not made public, and many details of the plan remain unclear.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said “excellent progress” had been made, but cautioned that “the hardest yards are still ahead,” as Russian attacks on Ukraine continue. Allies will participate in US-led monitoring and verification of any ceasefire, support the long-term provision of armaments for Ukraine’s defence, and work toward making their commitment to support Ukraine in the case of any future attack by Russia legally binding.
There was no immediate comment from Russian officials on Tuesday, which was the eve of Orthodox Christmas.
Moscow has revealed few details of its stance on security guarantees in the US-led peace negotiations, reaffirming existing demands and insisting there can be no ceasefire until a comprehensive settlement is agreed. Russian President Vladimir Putin has ruled out any deployment of troops from NATO countries on Ukrainian soil.
US envoy Witkoff says Trump backs security guarantees
Prospects for progress at the meeting had been viewed as uncertain, given the Trump administration’s focus on Venezuela and tensions with Europe over US suggestions regarding Greenland. Moscow is also showing few signs of compromise.
US envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, met with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee presidential palace for preparatory talks.
The US delegation was initially set to be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but he changed his plans after the US military intervention in Venezuela.
Support from nuclear-armed powers ‘essential’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged the progress made in the talks, but reiterated that commitments needed to be ratified by each country to be put in place after any settlement. He stated that allies had determined what forces are needed and how they would be operated.
Zelenskyy said details of how monitoring would work were still to be determined, as was the size and financing of the Ukrainian army.
He noted that troop deployments by Britain and France, Western Europe’s only nuclear-armed nations, would be “essential,” and that without such commitments, the alliance would not be a true “coalition of the willing.”
Also on Tuesday, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) carried out drone strikes on a military arsenal and an oil depot deep inside Russia, according to a security official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The drones hit an arsenal in Russia’s Kostroma region, triggering explosions and evacuations, and an oil depot in Russia’s Lipetsk region, causing a large fire.
AP/ABC
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