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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said multiple aspects of security guarantees were discussed with President Trump and European leaders Monday.
Among the topics broached included financial support for Ukraine’s military from Europe and obtaining American-made weapons purchased by Europeans for an estimated $90 billion, Zelensky told reporters after the White House meeting.
Also discussed was the US purchasing Ukraine-made drones as a way of assisting Kyiv.
Zelensky has been adamant that security guarantees for Ukraine, to prevent another Russian invasion, would be necessary as part of any peace deal with Moscow.
In the Oval Office, Zelensky noted that there were “two parts” that Kyiv would demand be included in a security pact, including a “strong Ukrainian army” featuring Western weaponry, training and intelligence sharing, and also persistent backing of “big countries.”
European NATO nations would be expected to put up the bulk of peacekeeping forces following a possible peace agreement as a de facto security guarantee to Ukraine.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised Trump at the White House for his willingness to help provide some form of security for Ukraine as part of a peace deal.
“The fact that you have said, ‘I’m willing to participate in security guarantees’ is a big step — is really a breakthrough, and it makes all the difference,” the former Dutch prime minister said. “Thank you for that.”
Rutte later told Fox News host Laura Ingraham that the security guarantees being discussed would include “Article Five-type” for Ukraine — a reference to the NATO alliance principle that an attack against one member is an attack against all members.
The possibility of US troops being deployed to Ukraine as peacekeepers, or Kyiv joining the NATO alliance, were not discussed at the White House Monday, Rutte said during his interview on “The Ingraham Angle.”
Last month, Trump vowed to provide “billions of dollars” worth of weapons to Ukraine — paid for and distributed by NATO allies — after a White House meeting with Rutte.
