The United States agrees to provide Ukraine with security guarantees on the condition that the Defense Forces withdraw from Donbas. This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelensky in an interview with Reuters, published on Wednesday, March 25, as reported by NV.ua.
“The Middle East undoubtedly influences President Trump, and I think it will also affect his further steps. Unfortunately, in my opinion, President Trump is still choosing a strategy of increasing pressure on the Ukrainian side”, - he told the agency.
Zelensky said that the United States is ready to finally agree on security guarantees at a high level “as soon as Ukraine is ready to withdraw troops from Donbas”.
He emphasized that the withdrawal of troops would threaten the security not only of Ukraine but also of Europe, as the aggressor country would gain strong defensive positions that it was unable to capture on the battlefield.
Reuters notes that, according to military analysts, to fully capture Donbas, in particular the “fortress belt” — fortified Ukrainian cities — russia may need several years and a significant amount of manpower.
Zelensky also thanked the Trump administration for maintaining supplies of missiles for the Patriot air defense systems, despite the demand for these weapons due to the war in the Middle East.
“We were not hindered in the deliveries. I am very grateful to President Trump and his team. But this stock of Patriot missiles is not enough for our needs”, - the head of the Ukrainian state said.
In January, the President of Ukraine said that the document on security guarantees between Ukraine and the United States is fully ready and awaiting signing.
Earlier, Ukrainska Pravda wrote that the entire negotiation framework has been built around the status of the non-occupied parts of Donbas, which special envoys of U.S. President Donald Trump, together with moscow, have been trying to “sell” to Kyiv for almost half a year as the end of the war. Other issues, such as energy or humanitarian ones, exist mainly to demonstrate “dynamics” and “progress”. The key point remains whether or not Ukraine is ready to withdraw its troops from the Donetsk oblast, UP wrote.