Russia says the West should provide Moscow with the same security guarantees it promised Ukraine. Russia’s representative in Vienna warned that ignoring the demand would be a mistake.
Russia’s permanent representative to the International Organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, stressed that the West is making a mistake by not starting discussions on providing Russia with the same security guarantees it promised to Ukraine.
“Many EU leaders have stressed that any future peace agreement should include reliable security guarantees for Ukraine. Russia agrees with this view. But Moscow has every right to expect that it will also receive effective security guarantees,” Mikhail Ulyanov stressed on Telegram on August 18.
Mr. Mikhail Ulyanov – Permanent Representative of Russia to International Organizations in Vienna. Photo: TASS
According to Mr. Ulyanov, the West is making a mistake by not starting to discuss this step with Russia. The Russian diplomat stressed that such guarantees should be “much more reliable than the famous promises” regarding NATO not to expand eastward.
Earlier, after an online meeting, the “Coalition of the Willing” affirmed its readiness to deploy a multinational force to Ukraine as soon as hostilities cease. The group of countries committed to supporting Kiev also appreciated US President Donald Trump’s commitment to providing security guarantees to Ukraine, in which the “Coalition of the Willing” will play an important role through a multinational force, along with other measures to protect Ukraine.
On August 17, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said that at the summit between the two Russian and US leaders in Alaska, Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to “strong security guarantees” for Ukraine as part of a potential peace deal.
According to Mr. Witkoff, President Putin agreed that the US and European countries would give Ukraine “protection similar to Article 5” of the NATO Charter as a security guarantee to end the war.
According to Article 5 of the NATO Charter, any attack or threat against one member is considered an attack or threat to the entire alliance.