Zelenskyy outlines three possible security guarantee formats for Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has named three possible security guarantee formats for Ukraine: bilateral US guarantees, a coalition of the willing backed by the United States, and NATO membership. He said discussions on all three formats must involve Europe.
Key points
- Zelenskyy presented the three formats on 27 October
- The first option is bilateral US security guarantees for Ukraine
- The proposed US guarantees are similar to NATO's Article 5 collective defence system
- The second option is a coalition of the willing with a US backstop
- The third option is Ukraine's membership in NATO
- Zelenskyy said security guarantees cannot be discussed without Europe's participation
- Ukraine expects trilateral talks with the United States and Russia in Lithuania
Why it matters
The three options could determine the international legal and organisational foundations of Ukraine's security. All three involve the United States in a central role, while most also require Europe's involvement. Ukraine's insistence that European states participate in shaping the guarantees is a key condition in the discussion.
What happened
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy listed three possible security guarantee formats for Ukraine during a meeting with journalists on 27 October. The first is bilateral US security guarantees, which he compared with the collective defence system under Article 5 of the NATO Charter. The second is a coalition of the willing with a US backstop. The third is Ukraine's membership in NATO.
Zelenskyy said the coalition format cannot be discussed without Europe and that the NATO option requires the participation of European member states. He also said post-war reconstruction and Ukraine's economic needs must be discussed with Europe's involvement, adding that Ukraine does not envision a "Marshall Plan" without Europe.
Ukraine expects to hold trilateral talks involving Ukrainian, US and Russian representatives in Lithuania, and conceptual questions could be discussed with Russia through US mediation.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian reporting presents security guarantees as a set of concrete formats in which the United States and Europe play central roles. Particular attention is given to Europe's role in discussing guarantees, NATO membership and Ukraine's post-war reconstruction, as well as to Europe's financial support for Ukrainian weapons and the state budget.
Background
The proposed bilateral US guarantees are compared structurally with the collective defence system under Article 5 of the NATO Charter. Post-war reconstruction and Ukraine's economic needs are treated as a separate area of discussion with partners. Europe currently finances weapons for Ukraine and supports the Ukrainian budget, while Ukraine counts on the EU, European leaders and European business for funding and reconstruction support.