U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff stated on Sunday that during a summit with his American counterpart Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to allow the United States and its European allies to provide Ukraine with security guarantees similar to NATO’s collective defense mandate. This agreement could potentially help end the ongoing three-and-a-half-year war.
In an interview with CNN, Witkoff noted, “We managed to secure the following concession: the possibility for the United States to offer protection akin to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which is one of the fundamental reasons why Ukraine desires NATO membership.”
This marked the first occasion that Witkoff heard of Putin’s agreement regarding such terms.
Further revealing some details from the discussions held at the summit in Alaska, Witkoff mentioned that both parties agreed on “strong security guarantees that I would describe as a game changer.”
He also indicated that Russia committed to a legislative pledge not to seek any further territorial acquisition in Ukraine.
Witkoff defended Trump’s decision to move away from attempts to persuade Russia to agree to an immediate ceasefire, arguing that the President shifted towards a peace agreement due to significant progress made.
He explained, “We addressed nearly all other issues necessary for reaching a peace agreement,” but refrained from providing additional specifics.
Witkoff added, “We’re beginning to notice a degree of moderation in their thinking about reaching a final peace deal.”