FT: Ukraine offers $100 billion US weapons deal to secure postwar guarantees

Ukraine has proposed to purchase $100 billion worth of American weapons—financed by European partners—as part of an effort to obtain U.S. security guarantees after a peace agreement with Russia, according to a document reviewed by the Financial Times.

The proposals also include a $50 billion partnership between Kyiv and Washington to co-produce drones with Ukrainian firms that have developed advanced technologies since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

According to four individuals familiar with the matter, Kyiv shared these plans, which had not been previously disclosed, in a set of talking points distributed to European allies ahead of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday.

The document does not specify which weapons are being requested, but Ukraine has repeatedly emphasised its need for at least 10 U.S.-made Patriot air defence systems to protect major cities and critical infrastructure, along with additional missiles and other equipment. The section on drones also does not clarify the proportion that would be procurement versus direct investment.

The proposal is carefully tailored to appeal to Trump’s emphasis on boosting American industry. Asked at the White House on August 18 about further U.S. military assistance for Ukraine, Trump remarked, “We’re not giving anything. We’re selling weapons.”

The document outlines how Kyiv intends to counterbalance Trump’s recent posture, which appeared more aligned with Russia’s vision for ending the war following his summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week.

It reiterates Ukraine’s call for a ceasefire, which Trump had initially supported but later dropped in favour of pursuing a broader peace settlement after his talks with the Kremlin leader.

During Monday’s discussions in Washington with Zelenskyy and European leaders, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told Trump in public remarks that the group expected U.S. support in securing a ceasefire before moving to the next phase of talks. “I can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire,” Merz said. “So let’s work on that and let’s try to put pressure on Russia because the credibility of these efforts we are undertaking today depends on at least a ceasefire.”

The Ukrainian document stresses that “lasting peace shall be based not on concessions and free gifts to Putin, but on [a] strong security framework that will prevent future aggression.” It adds that recent Russian media coverage demonstrates Moscow’s lack of seriousness about peace and even contempt toward Trump, citing television host Vladimir Solovyov, who mocked Trump’s attempts to threaten Russia by declaring that Moscow could “destroy [the U.S.] with nuclear weapons.”

Kyiv makes clear it will not accept any settlement involving territorial concessions and insists a ceasefire must be the first step toward a comprehensive peace agreement. It also explicitly rejects Putin’s proposal to Trump in Alaska to freeze the frontlines if Ukraine withdraws from the partly occupied Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Such a move, the document warns, would provide Russia “a foothold for a further and rapid advance towards the city of Dnipro” and allow Putin to “achieve the goals of aggression by other means.”

The document further argues that Russia’s attempts to resolve territorial disputes before substantive peace negotiations are intended to establish a fait accompli on the battlefield while failing to guarantee Ukraine’s long-term security.

In addition, Kyiv insists that Russia must provide full compensation for wartime destruction, potentially funded through the $300 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets held in Western states. Any easing of sanctions, it says, should occur only if Russia abides by a future peace agreement and “plays [a] fair game.”

By Tamilla Hasanova