Zelensky States Absence of Clear Security Pledge from European Partners

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukraine's partners in Europe have failed to provide concrete pledges that they will protect his country in the case of a future Russian attack.

"I am asking this very question to every one of our allies and I have not received a definitive and straightforward response yet," he told reporters on midweek.

These remarks follow a day after the UK and France inked a declaration of intent on deploying troops in Ukraine if a peace deal to end the war with Russia is finalized.

However, comprehensive defense assurances have not been agreed. The United States, which has been spearheading initiatives to end the invasion, was reported to have abstained from signing such a pledge at talks in Paris on the previous day.

Outcomes from the Paris Discussions

After the Paris talks, which included some three dozen nations that form the group termed the 'Coalition of the Willing', UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the UK and France would "establish military hubs across Ukraine" to deter future invasion, while France's President Macron subsequently indicated thousands of troops may be sent.

Allies proposed that the US would assume a leading role in overseeing any ceasefire. But the central sticking point of ceding land that Ukraine is being pressured to offer to Russia as part of the peace proposals are still being discussed.

The Russian government has not yet commented on the declaration made in the French capital.

Russian President Vladimir Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and Russian forces now occupies about one-fifth of Ukraine's land.

The President's Evolving Stance

The UK Prime Minister characterized the joint statement as "a vital part of our dedication to support Ukraine for the foreseeable future".

He continued: "It paves the way for the legal framework under which allied military personnel could function on Ukraine's territory, securing Ukraine's skies and seas, and rebuilding Ukraine's armed forces for the future."

Zelensky hailed that agreement as a "significant leap of progress".

A day later, however, he seemed more cautious.

"I perceive the determination, the political resolve, and that the allies are prepared, and the allies are willing to give us strong sanctions, powerful defense assurances," he said when asked if nations in Europe would come to Ukraine's aid.

"But as long as we don't have such security guarantees - formally ratified, supported by parliaments, backed by the U.S. Congress - this question remains unresolved. And should they materialize, you still have to rely primarily on your inherent capabilities."

Persistent Challenges and Fighting

Negotiations in Paris were also notable owing to the attendance of US President Donald Trump's peace envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.

One envoy stated the allies "mostly completed" their work on agreeing security protocols.

Last week, Zelensky said a peace deal was "90% ready".

Questions of land and security guarantees have been at the center of unresolved issues for diplomats.

The Russian leader has consistently stated that Ukraine's military must withdraw from all of Ukraine's eastern Donbas or Russia will seize it, rejecting any compromise over how to end the war.

Zelensky has so far ruled out relinquishing any land, but has proposed that Ukraine could withdraw its troops to an agreed point - but provided that Russia reciprocated the action.

Russian forces now holds about 75% of the Donetsk oblast, and some nearly all of the adjacent Luhansk region. The pair of oblasts constitute the Donbas industrial heartland.

Attacks have been escalating against Ukrainian cities - with a focus on power facilities. Russia has also made incremental advances in capturing more Ukrainian territory.

Ukraine has hit back at Russian targets with drones, albeit with more limited success.