Consultations w/UK Begin on Security Guarantee-Chief Of Staff

Wires carrying comments from the Chief of Staff of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claiming that discussions are underway between Kyiv and London on the prospect of the UK providing security guarantees to Ukraine. The prospect was discussed more widely at the NATO leaders' summit in Lithuania last month. Politico then reported that according to two sources "the U.S., U.K., Germany and France are eyeing “Israel-style” assurances — basically providing Ukraine with much more modern, state-of-the-art weapons, intelligence and training, beyond the current conflict, to make sure its military is a sufficient deterrent against future attacks."

• These guarantees will not be equivalent to full NATO membership, a prospect that is likely to remain out of reach for Ukraine while it remains at war with Russia. Under NATO rules, nations with border disputes are not allowed to proceed with the accession process. There is also the broader issue of Article 5, which would mean that under the mutual defence pact, given that Ukraine is at war with Russia, the entire alliance would be at war with Russia.