Zelensky responded to Rubio’s accusations of lying about the conditions for providing security guarantees to Ukraine
Volodymyr Zelensky insists that during the peace talks, the United States signaled its readiness to provide Ukraine with security guarantees after the Ukrainian military leaves Donbas. Zelensky stated this on March 28 during a video conference with journalists.
The day before, on March 27, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Volodymyr Zelensky’s words that Washington was ready to provide Ukraine with security guarantees only on condition of withdrawing from the Donetsk and Luhansk regions a lie.
“Most of the iceberg is not visible, but believe me, I have shown a smaller part. I am speaking absolutely frankly… You can have different views on this, but all the signals that were present throughout the entire negotiation process indicate that, and this is not only my analysis, it sounds absolutely correct, that we will be able to receive security guarantees from the US not before the ceasefire, not before the end of the war, but after “our troops will withdraw from Donbas,” Zelenskyy said.
The president recalled that Ukraine seeks to sign security guarantees before the end of the war, as well as a separate reconstruction package. According to him, these guarantees will come into effect after a vote in Congress, and Congress itself will vote after the end of the war.
“However, we were told that the question is not when this comes into effect, but when these guarantees are given to us. The guarantees are given to us after we leave Donbas. And this is the condition for the end of the war today,” Zelensky noted.
He also emphasized that the risk of a new attack by Russia remains quite high, so Ukraine needs security guarantees.
At the same time, the head of state denied information that the United States is allegedly putting pressure on Ukraine.
“It’s just that maybe it was perceived in the format that the Americans are pressuring us to leave and only then will they give a guarantee, but I’m not saying that they are pressuring us. And I’ve never said that. Neither publicly nor otherwise,” he stressed.
On March 27, in an interview with Reuters, Zelensky stated that the United States was ready to provide Ukraine with security guarantees only on condition that the Ukrainian Defense Forces leave the administrative borders of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
