NATO chief says 30 countries working on security guarantees for Ukraine

WASHINGTON

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Monday that 30 countries are working on a framework of security guarantees for Ukraine, stressing that the US is now prepared to join the initiative.

Speaking to FOX News after talks at the White House with US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several European leaders, Rutte described the discussions as “very successful” and said the countries are focused on security guarantees that could take effect after a ceasefire or, preferably, a full peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

“So over the last couple of months, under the leadership of Keir Starmer, the British prime minister, and Emmanuel Macron, the French president, a group of now 30 countries, including Japan and Australia, are working on this concept of security guarantees,” he said.

“What the US has now said is that the United States wants to get involved in this. Exactly what is meant by US involvement will be discussed over the coming days.”

According to Rutte, Trump held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday which resulted in an agreement to hold a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy ahead of a trilateral summit.

“He was able, in a conversation with President Putin, to have Putin agree to first a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy. So they will now discuss where that would be,” he said.

Asked whether territorial concessions by Ukraine were addressed, Rutte said the issue was not discussed in Washington.

He also stressed that NATO membership for Ukraine was not part of the current talks.

“The official NATO position since the summit of 2024 is that there is an irreversible path for Ukraine into NATO,” he said. “But what we are discussing here is not NATO membership. What we are discussing here is Article 5-type security guarantees for Ukraine.”

Rutte’s remarks came after Trump hosted him, Zelenskyy and several European leaders at the White House to discuss the next steps in diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

Leaders attending Monday’s talks included UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb.