Ukraine seeks real guarantees before any compromise, president warns

Trust in international security guarantees is built through concrete actions, not declarations, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasised in an interview with POLITICO.

Writing on his X page, the president noted that Ukrainians who have lost loved ones, homes, and their way of life cannot rely on promises without tangible protections, Caliber.Az reports.

“When you want to get compromises from people who are under attacks and who are not aggressors – what do you give them? They don't trust anybody. They don't trust anybody because we had Budapest Memorandum. That was security guarantees. We gave up our nuclear and other weapons. A lot of aircraft – dozens of jets. We gave them up and received security guarantees of sovereignty and independence.

In the end, we don't have those weapons, and we don't have security guarantees. Nobody saved our independence. It's true. And that’s why it's understandable why people have no trust. They don’t live in a fantasy world. They are realistic, and they lost a lot: their families, their houses, and their way of life.

That's why people have to see what the security guarantees will look like. What if Russia comes? Many of them aren't asking, “What if they come?” They are asking, “What will happen when they come again?” Because they are sure that the Russians will come again. And they simply say, “No, we will not run away. We just want to hear what it means. What is the price? What do the security guarantees from the world leader – the United States of America – mean?” he said.

According to Zelenskyy, the US is preparing security guarantees but with conditions: “They said – first this swap of territories, or something like that, and then security guarantees.”

He stressed that Ukraine is open to compromise, but not one that allows Russia to quickly recover and return. 

The priority, he said, is to secure concrete guarantees from the US and European partners first, and only then discuss with Ukrainians what concessions they are willing to consider.

“We can sign the document on security guarantees for Ukraine with the leaders. It will be a strong signal for people – America will help and support you, Europeans will be together with you if Russia comes again,” Zelenskyy added, underlining the importance of real protection before any concessions.

By Jeyhun Aghazada