Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke about Kyiv’s expectations in an interview with National Public Radio. According to him, a standard ceasefire will not ensure lasting peace, so any agreements must be approved by Congress.
What the U.S. guarantees should entail
President Zelenskyy explained that U.S. commitments must include a specific and immediate response to the aggressor’s actions.
“If it says exactly this on paper: ‘If Putin attacks Ukraine, Trump will attack Putin’ – that is a security guarantee,”
– the Ukrainian leader explained.
He added that the best path to long-term protection remains accession to NATO and the European Union.
At the same time, strong bilateral agreements with Washington are necessary regardless of whether Ukraine becomes a member of the Alliance. According to Zelenskyy, this must be a strong partnership that leaves no chance for the war to be repeated.
Security guarantees from the United States are a direct, sound path. It’s a sound path, but we need more details... We hope to have a strong partnership and legally binding security guarantees passed by Congress
– the head of state noted.
Speaking about what victory means, the head of state emphasized that the main outcome must be to make aggression by Russia impossible.
As a reminder, Donald Trump explained his reluctance to publicly call Vladimir Putin a dictator by the specifics of the negotiation process. According to the American leader, one should not resort to insults or mockery directed at an opponent when concluding agreements.
Recently, Zelenskyy stated that Russia is ignoring the energy truce. Despite a pause on Ukraine’s part, the occupiers continued to strike at its infrastructure, which served as a kind of response from the Kremlin to Washington’s initiatives.