US proposes 'security guarantees' to Ukraine similar to those of NATO, but without membership

The United States on Saturday proposed security guarantees to Ukraine similar to NATO's Article 5, but without formal membership in the alliance, an unnamed diplomatic source said.

"As one of the security guarantees for Ukraine, the U.S. side proposed an Article 5-type guarantee, outside NATO, with the a priori agreement of [Vladimir] Putin," the source said.

The source added that this proposal was presented to Kiev during the phone call between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky and "reiterated" later in the continuation of that conversation with European leaders.

Another source familiar with the matter, also on condition of anonymity, confirmed to AFP that the idea of NATO-inspired protection was mentioned during the call.

"But no one knows in detail how it would work or why Putin would accept it if he is categorically against NATO and obviously against any effective guarantee of Ukraine's sovereignty," the source qualified.

According to the same source this question could be addressed during the meeting scheduled on Monday in Washington between Trump and Zelensky.

NATO: If a member country is attacked, all others come to its aid

Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty establishes the principle of mutual defense: if one member country is attacked, all the others come to its aid.

Officially, Ukraine has long aspired to join NATO, but Trump rejected that possibility after his return to the White House in January.

Kiev calls for solid "security guarantees" to deter the Kremlin from striking again after an eventual ceasefire on the front lines. Russia opposes Ukrainian membership in NATO, which it presents as an existential threat to its security.