Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky States Absence of Explicit Security Pledge from Allies
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says European allies have not given him sound guarantees that they will defend Ukraine in the case of a new Russian aggression.
"I am asking this very question to all our partners and I have not received a definitive and straightforward response yet," he told reporters on Wednesday.
These remarks follow a day after the UK and France inked a statement of purpose on deploying troops in Ukraine if a peace deal to end the war with Russia is agreed.
However, full security guarantees have not been agreed. The US, which has been leading efforts to end the invasion, reportedly did not sign such a pledge at discussions held in the French capital on the previous day.
Details of the Paris Talks
Following the negotiations in Paris, which included some three dozen nations that comprise the group termed the 'Coalition of the Willing', British PM Keir Starmer said the two nations would "establish military hubs across Ukraine" to prevent any future incursion, while France's President Macron subsequently indicated thousands of troops may be deployed.
Partner nations suggested that the United States would assume a leading role in overseeing any ceasefire. But the key issue of ceding land that Ukraine is being pressured to offer to Russia as a component of the settlement terms are still being discussed.
Moscow has thus far remained silent on the announcement made in the French capital.
President Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the early months of 2022, and Moscow now occupies about one-fifth of Ukraine's land.
The President's Evolving Stance
The UK Prime Minister characterized the bilateral declaration as "an essential component of our dedication to stand with Ukraine for the long-term".
He continued: "It establishes the pathway for the juridical structure under which British, French and partner forces could operate on Ukrainian soil, protecting Ukrainian airspace and waters, and regenerating Ukraine's military for the years to come."
Zelensky hailed that agreement as a "significant leap of progress".
A day later, however, he seemed more cautious.
"I perceive the determination, the political resolve, and that the partners are ready, and the allies are willing to give us robust economic measures, powerful defense assurances," he said when asked if nations in Europe would defend Ukraine.
"But as long as we don't have such binding security pacts - legally binding, supported by parliaments, supported by the United States Congress - this crucial issue remains unresolved. And should they materialize, you must ultimately depend first and foremost on your own strength."
Persistent Challenges and Fighting
The Paris talks were also notable due to the presence of US President Donald Trump's peace envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Witkoff said the allies "mostly completed" their work on agreeing security protocols.
Last week, Zelensky said a peace deal was "90% ready".
Questions of land and security guarantees have been at the center of unresolved issues for diplomats.
The Russian leader has consistently stated that Ukraine's military must pull back from all of Ukraine's eastern Donbas or Russia will seize it, dismissing potential concessions over how to end the war.
Zelensky has so far ruled out ceding any territory, but has proposed that Ukraine could withdraw its troops to an agreed point - but provided that Russia did the same.
Russian forces now holds about 75% of the Donetsk oblast, and some 99% of the adjacent Luhansk region. The two regions form the Donbas industrial heartland.
Attacks have been escalating against Ukrainian cities - with a focus on power facilities. Russia has also made incremental advances in seizing additional Ukrainian land.
Ukrainian forces have retaliated at Russian targets with drones, though with varying degrees of effectiveness.
