Ukraine seeks a minimum 20-year security guarantee from the United States before signing a peace deal, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said ahead of next week’s talks with Russia and the US. Speaking in Munich, he also pressed for a clear timeline for Ukraine’s EU membership, with some EU officials suggesting 2027 as a possible date.
At the Munich Security Conference, Zelenskiy hoped that the trilateral meetings would be serious, substantive, and helpful for all sides, but warned that discussions often revolve around conflicting points. He criticized the American focus on concessions that are often framed only in the context of Ukraine rather than Russia.
The friction between Europe and the US over how explicitly security guarantees should be laid out before a peace agreement appears to be signed remains a major rift in transatlantic relations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a speech welcomed by European leaders seeking a thaw, offered a partnership with Europe, but with many conditions. He stressed that Washington would act alone if its climate, migration, and tariff requirements are not met, though he emphasized that Europe and the US belong together and that the US would rather rebuild the world order jointly with Europe than alone.
During a Munich press briefing, Zelenskiy said the US had suggested that if Ukraine withdrew from Donbas, peace could arrive quickly, but Ukraine insisted such a concession was impossible given the residents there. He disclosed that the US had proposed a 15-year security guarantee, while Ukraine is asking for a legally binding 20-year guarantee that details the exact support the US would provide to a planned European reassurance mission inside Ukraine after any peace agreement.
Zelenskiy noted that no concrete elements of a so‑called prosperity plan—granting the US access to Ukrainian mineral resources—had been exchanged yet. He also questioned why the Russian negotiating team head had been swapped, interpreting it as a tactic to buy time rather than a shift in strategy.
He criticized Europe for being largely absent from the negotiating table, calling it a major mistake, a sentiment echoed by China’s foreign minister Wang Yi.
On Friday, former President Donald Trump urged Zelenskiy to speed up efforts toward a deal with Russia.
Zelenskiy maintained that Ukrainian elections, which the US has urged Kyiv to hold by May 15, could take place only two months after a ceasefire to ensure security for voters.
Trump has pressed for a quick settlement but has not detailed consequences if Kyiv remains unwilling to concede more to the US.
Zelenskiy also said Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure would be a topic at the Geneva talks, noting that no energy facility in Ukraine has escaped damage.
European leaders appear pessimistic about a diplomatic breakthrough, with many believing President Putin is not yet economically or militarily exhausted. Zelenskiy expressed a goal of raising Ukrainian casualties to as many as 50,000 killed or badly injured per month, a stark statement that underlines the high human cost of the conflict.
One European official projected at least two more years of fighting, arguing Europe has the resources to sustain Ukraine that long. Zelenskiy also condemned Iran for supplying Shahed drones used against Ukraine, highlighting a major point of contention with Tehran. He referenced large protests in Munich against the Iranian regime and stated that although Ukraine has not had a lasting conflict of interest with Iran, the drones supplied to Russia are causing widespread damage. He warned that given time, Iran would cause more destruction, urging that regimes like Iran be stopped immediately.
