The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen during a speech at a conference on security issues in Bratislava, offered NATO members to provide Ukraine with security guarantees on the way to membership in the Alliance.
The Guardian writes about it.
The publication notes that before the NATO summit in Vilnius in July, the debate on possible forms of security guarantees for Ukraine is intensifying until it becomes a member of the Alliance. Ukraine would like to receive a clear schedule and learn about the main stages, but the USA does not want to take on such obligations.
Ursula von der Leyen informed that examples from history can be used for the future security status of Ukraine, but she did not specify which ones. Presumably, writes The Guardian, she referred to the position of neutrality that Finland took after the World War II until its accession to the EU.
The president of the European Commission also noted that NATO members can provide a number of guarantees of deterrence by refusing "due to military equipment that can strengthen Ukraine against future Russian attacks." According to her, it is important that "friends of Ukraine will be by her side for a long time."
Broadly speaking, deterrence by denial means convincing an adversary that an attack will fail because of strong defenses, while NATOʼs earlier concept of deterrence by retaliation means threatening an adversary with retaliation for an attack if it is launched. NATO adopted a strategy of denial at the Madrid summit.
Ursula von der Leyen once again denied a peace plan based on the frozen conflict and said that the threat of a second Russian invasion will disappear only when all Russian troops and equipment leave Ukrainian soil.
According to her, the EU has realized that it is not enough for Europe to simply tell Ukraine that the door for Ukraineʼs final membership in the EU is open, the European Union must take active steps to get closer to the candidate states.
- According to The Wall Street Journal, the USA, Great Britain, Germany and France can become security guarantors for Ukraine before its accession to NATO. This will be the so-called "Israeli security model".
- In September 2022, the Office of the President (OP) of Ukraine announced the project of international security guarantees of Ukraine. A group of experts led by the head of the OP Andriy Yermak and former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen worked on the development of the document. The OP emphasizes that these guarantees do not replace Ukraineʼs movement towards membership in the EU and NATO. After becoming a member of the European Union, Ukraine will be able to use the clause on mutual defense of the EU, and after becoming a member of NATO — the clause on collective defense of the Alliance.
- France has said it is ready to conclude an agreement with Ukraine to provide it with security guarantees for long-term protection and to prevent potential future threats.