"We have achieved the following concession: The US can offer security guarantees similar to Article 5, which is one of the real reasons Ukraine wants to join NATO. This is the first time we've seen Russia agree to this," Steve Witkoff, special envoy for President Donald Trump, said today, referring to discussions at the US-Russia summit in Alaska.
Article 5 of the NATO treaty states that an attack on one member of the alliance is considered an attack on all, and NATO will coordinate a response.
Witkoff said the significant progress made at the 15/8 meeting led President Trump to abandon efforts to push for a ceasefire in Ukraine, instead focusing on a comprehensive peace agreement to end the conflict entirely.
The US official confirmed that the leaders "addressed almost all the issues necessary for a peace agreement," but did not provide further details. "We are starting to see some moderation in their thinking about reaching a final peace agreement," he said.
Russian officials have not commented on the information.
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US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in the Oval Office, White House, in May. Photo: Reuters |
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in the Oval Office, White House, in May. Photo: Reuters
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the same day that she welcomed the security guarantees for Ukraine, stating that "the European Union (EU) is ready to contribute its part."
Ukraine enshrined the goal of joining NATO in its constitution in 2019, despite warnings from Russia that the possibility of NATO deploying forces and weapons near its border would create an unacceptable security threat.
Russia later cited this as one of the reasons for launching its special military operation in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government applied to join NATO in 9/2022, more than six months after the conflict began. At the late 2024 summit in Washington, NATO countries issued a joint statement affirming the "irreversible" future of Ukraine's membership, but did not extend an invitation to Kyiv.
President Trump has repeatedly rejected the possibility of admitting Ukraine to the military alliance. After the summit in Alaska, Trump spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy before European leaders joined the call.
A diplomatic source said that NATO-like security guarantees were discussed, but emphasized that "no one knows how this proposal will be implemented and why Putin agreed while vehemently opposing Ukraine's NATO membership."
Vu Hoang (According to CNN, AFP)
