Zelensky, NATO chief meet on security guarantees for Ukraine

Kyiv, Aug 23 (IANS) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he discussed security guarantees for Ukraine during a meeting with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte in Kyiv.

Following the talks, Zelensky on Friday said that Ukraine aims to secure "Article 5-like" guarantees, similar to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.

"The outcome we must achieve: a crystal-clear architecture of which countries assist us on the ground, which are responsible for the security of our skies, which guarantee security at sea and support Ukraine," Zelensky said in a statement on his official website.

He added that guarantees should also include financing of the Ukrainian military from partner nations, reports Xinhua news agency.

According to Zelensky, negotiations between Ukraine, Europe and the United States on the specific content of the security guarantees are ongoing.

Zelensky and Rutte also discussed weapons deliveries to Ukraine coordinated under the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List, proposed by NATO and the United States, as well as joint efforts aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

This comes hours after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced that there is no meeting planned between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelensky.

"Putin is ready to meet with Zelensky when the agenda is ready for a summit, and this agenda is not ready at all," Lavrov told US news outlet NBC.

Lavrov said Russia has agreed to show flexibility on several issues raised by US President Donald Trump during his meeting with Putin in Alaska last week, but suggested Ukraine had hindered the meeting agenda.

On Monday night, Trump said in a post on the Truth Social platform that he had called Putin and began arranging a bilateral meeting between Putin and Zelensky, with the location to be determined.

Trump added that after a Putin-Zelensky meeting, a trilateral meeting involving US, Russian and Ukrainian leaders would take place.

Lavrov previously said that Russia does not reject any formats, either bilateral or trilateral, for resolving the conflict in Ukraine.

--IANS

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