Kyiv says Russia accepted US plan for Ukraine security guarantees

KYIV - Russia said at recent talks in Geneva it would accept the US proposal for Ukraine’s post-war security guarantees, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff said on Feb 28.

“At the last talks, the Russian side said for example that they would accept the security guarantees offered to Ukraine by the United States,” said top aide Kyrylo Budanov, in an interview aired on Ukrainian television.

US President Donald Trump is urging Moscow and Kyiv to strike an agreement to end Europe’s biggest war since 1945, though Mr Zelensky has complained that his country is facing more pressure to make concessions.

Ukraine is seeking iron-clad security guarantees which commit the US and its European allies to action if Russia attacks again after a peace deal is reached.

The last round of peace talks, which took place in Geneva last week, did not achieve a breakthrough and was described as difficult by Kyiv and Moscow, although Washington said it saw “meaningful progress”.

Lieutenant-General Budanov also said that at present, Russia had not agreed to a summit between Mr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which had been floated earlier as a possibility by US special envoy Steve Witkoff. REUTERS