Zelensky and Trump: Historic agreement on security guarantees for Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Thursday a major diplomatic breakthrough during his meeting with US President Donald Trump in Davos, confirming a comprehensive agreement on US security guarantees for post-war Ukraine. This announcement is a pivotal step in efforts to develop a coherent plan to end the ongoing war with Russia and ensure future regional stability.

Speaking to reporters in English after the meeting, Zelensky described the security guarantees agreement as “completed,” noting that the next step requires procedural and legislative steps to ensure the agreement’s sustainability. The Ukrainian president explained, “The two presidents must sign the official document, and then it will be submitted to the two national parliaments (the US Congress and the Ukrainian parliament) for ratification,” thus giving the agreement legal force binding on both countries.

Historical context and the need for security guarantees

These developments come at a highly sensitive time in the history of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which erupted in full-scale war in February 2022. Kyiv has consistently demanded concrete security guarantees that go beyond diplomatic promises, particularly after the experience of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, under which Ukraine relinquished its nuclear arsenal in exchange for security guarantees that failed to prevent subsequent Russian military intervention. Since the beginning of the current war, the Ukrainian leadership has sought long-term defense commitments from its Western allies as a temporary or preliminary step toward NATO membership—a concept known in diplomatic circles as the “deterrence model,” which would guarantee Ukraine the provision of weapons, training, and intelligence to deter any future aggression.

The importance of the agreement and its geopolitical impact

Reaching an agreement with Donald Trump carries profound political implications, given the United States' position as Ukraine's largest military backer. Analysts suggest that Trump's acceptance of these guarantees reflects a shift in perspective toward the need to secure Europe's eastern borders through binding bilateral agreements. This agreement is expected to have far-reaching consequences

• On the domestic front: The agreement will boost morale within Ukraine and give the government a strong bargaining chip in any future peace negotiations, ensuring that Ukraine is not left alone to face security challenges.
• On a regional and international level, the agreement sends a clear message to Moscow that Western support for Kyiv will evolve into a long-term institutional and legal framework, rather than just emergency aid packages. This agreement may also encourage other European countries, such as Britain, Germany, and France, to accelerate their bilateral security agreements with Kyiv, creating a strategic security network around Ukraine that contributes to the stability of the European continent.

In conclusion, this announcement represents a potential turning point in the course of the war, as it moves the relationship between Washington and Kyiv from a stage of support based on field needs to a stage of regulated strategic partnership, which may be the cornerstone of any future political settlement to end the conflict.