Europe cannot guarantee Ukraine's security without the United States - Zelenskyy

If President Donald Trump withdraws U.S. support for Ukraine, Europe will not be able to fill this gap on its own. There are no real security guarantees without America. This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an interview with the Guardian , UNN reports.

There are voices that say that Europe could offer security guarantees without the Americans, and I always say no. Security guarantees without America are not real security guarantees

According to the Guardian, Trump has said he wants to end the war in Ukraine, but skeptics fear that a US-brokered deal could lead to Ukraine being forced to capitulate to Vladimir Putin's maximalist demands.

Zelenskiy said he was ready to negotiate, but wanted Ukraine to do so from a "position of strength," and said he would offer lucrative reconstruction contracts and investment concessions to American companies to try to attract Trump.

"Those who help us save Ukraine will have a chance to restore it, with their business together with Ukrainian business. We are ready to talk about all this in detail," Zelensky said.

Zelenskyy noted that it is crucial for Ukraine's security that US military support continues, citing the example of the US Patriot air defense system.

"Only Patriot can protect us from all types of missiles, only Patriot. There are other (European - ed.) systems... but they cannot provide full protection... So even from this small example, we can see that without America, security guarantees cannot be complete," Zelenskyy said.

Addendum

Trump says Ukraine has "effectively" agreed to give the United States access to rare earth minerals worth $500 billion in return for Washington's military aid.

The Telegraph reported that Donald Trump's special envoy for the Russia-Ukraine war, Keith Kellogg, has suspended the development of a peace plan for Ukraine to hold individual talks with NATO allies to give Europe a seat at the table.