Zelensky stressed that the first step on the path to peace should be security guarantees from the United States and Europe. They must protect Ukraine from any attack from the aggressor country Russia after the end of the war. Otherwise, there is a risk that the Russian Federation, after the ceasefire, will be able to prepare for a new attack.
The media wrote that Ukrainian negotiators have made less progress on the issue of security guarantees for Ukraine than Zelensky previously showed. Previous statements by the Ukrainian president indicated the readiness of an agreement with the United States, while now in an interview he admitted that the main issues related to the document remain unresolved. It is not yet known whether the United States is ready, for example, to shoot down missiles over Ukraine if the Russian Federation violates the peace agreement.
According to Zelensky, Ukraine has raised this issue and will continue to raise it, because the answers from the United States have so far been “too vague and evasive.” The President stressed that Ukraine needs all guarantees to be set out in writing.
Context
Zelensky, in an interview with Axios published on December 26, 2025, said that the United States offered Ukraine an agreement under which security guarantees would be provided for 15 years.
On January 6, 2026, following a meeting of the “coalition of the willing” in Paris, Ukraine, France and Great Britain signed a declaration of intent on the upcoming deployment of multinational forces in Ukraine after the end of the war. French President Emmanuel Macron said that within the framework of the “coalition of the willing,” a mechanism for monitoring the ceasefire regime was laid down, which should be ensured by the United States.
US representatives did not join the “coalition of the willing” talks in Paris To joint statement on security guarantees, Politico noted. Details of US participation in a multinational force for Ukraine were removed from the draft communiqué, journalists say, although in previous versions the US intended to “support forces in the event of an attack” and provide assistance in the field of intelligence and logistics.
On January 22, Zelensky said that the document on security guarantees from the United States was ready.
The United States told Ukraine that it must sign a peace agreement with the Russian Federation to provide security guarantees, Reuters wrote on January 27.
