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Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, stated that Russia has agreed to accept the security guarantees offered to Ukraine by the United States.
Speaking on a telethon, Budanov said: “Regarding security guarantees, in previous talks the Russian side explicitly said they will accept the guarantees that the US offers Ukraine. There’s no way around it. What the US proposes, they say, they will be forced to accept.”
He emphasized that these guarantees are Ukraine’s own and that Russia will have to respect them. Budanov also noted that while people may have personal opinions about the US, it cannot be disregarded in matters of security guarantees. He concluded that there is now some progress on this front.
Budanov added that Ukraine would prefer the security guarantees to be established first, followed by other matters, though the exact timeline remains uncertain: “Probably we all would like guarantees first, and then everything else. How it will unfold, only time will tell. But I believe the guarantees will activate in parallel with the end of the war, if we reach that point.”
Background
Recently, President Volodymyr Zelensky said US President Donald Trump wants to sign an agreement on security guarantees and ending the war during a major ceremony, but Kyiv insists the guarantees first be approved by the US Congress.
Deputy Head of the Office Serhiy Kyslytsya emphasized that the upcoming security agreement must clearly define the guarantees in both languages and undergo ratification in Congress, aiming to avoid mistakes like those made with the Budapest Memorandum.
