U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff speaks throughout a swearing-in ceremony for Jeanine Pirro as interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump on the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 28, 2025.
Leah Millis | Reuters
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff stated Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to permit the United States and European nations to offer Ukraine “Article 5-like protection” as a security assure to carry an finish to the warfare.
“We were able to win the following concession: That the United States could offer Article Five-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO,” Witkoff stated Sunday on NCS.
It was “the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that,” he continued.
NATO’s Article 5 says that “if a NATO Ally is the victim of an armed attack, each and every other member of the Alliance will consider this act of violence as an armed attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the Ally attacked.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated Sunday that she welcomed the security guarantees for Ukraine, and that the “European Union … is ready to do its share,” in keeping with the Associated Press.
Witkoff’s remarks come simply days after President Donald Trump met in Alaska with Putin amid his nation’s ongoing warfare with Ukraine. Trump and his administration hailed the talks as “productive,” however particulars of the assembly have up to now been scant.
Trump, within the lead-up to his assembly with Putin, repeatedly pressured the necessity for an pressing, long-lasting ceasefire within the warfare.
The talks didn’t yield such an settlement, sparking concern amongst officers in Ukraine and European nations that Trump was transferring away from the purpose.
In the times for the reason that talks, Trump, nonetheless, has stated that the “best way” to finish the warfare is “to go directly to a Peace Agreement.”
Witkoff stated Sunday that Trump and Putin “covered almost all the other issues necessary for a peace deal” throughout their hours-long assembly, with out offering further particulars.
“We began to see some moderation in the way they’re thinking about getting to a final peace deal,” he stated.
Peace deal ‘nonetheless an extended methods off’
Secretary of State Marco Rubio additionally stated Sunday that Russia will face “additional consequences” if Trump’s effort to finish the warfare “doesn’t work out,” however warned towards implementing further sanctions.
“The minute you levy additional sanctions, strong additional sanctions, the talking stops,” he stated on ABC News.
Rubio added that “we’re still a long ways off” from a peace settlement.
“We made progress in the sense that we identified potential areas of agreement, but there remain some big areas of disagreement,” he stated. “We’re not at the precipice of a peace agreement, we’re not at the edge of one, but I do think progress was made towards one.”
Trump is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders on Monday.
What’s at stake
If the Kremlin did in reality comply with security situations for Ukraine just like NATO’s Article 5, it will be a stark departure from no less than one of many Russian president’s earlier justifications for attacking the nation.
Russia has stated any decision to the warfare would want to deal with the “root causes of the conflict,” most importantly Ukraine demilitarizing and abandoning its aspirations of becoming a member of NATO.
The Kremlin has additionally made clear it needs any peace deal to incorporate worldwide recognition of its annexation of Crimea and vital parts of japanese Ukraine.
Following Friday’s summit, Trump stated a peace deal may very well be reached if Zelenskyy agreed to surrender the Donbas area, the New York Times reported, citing senior European officers.
But Zelenskyy has been adamant that Kyiv won’t ever acknowledge any of its sovereign territory as a part of Russia, even areas Moscow has already annexed. The Ukrainian president has stated doing so would violate the nation’s Constitution. Ukraine has additionally stated it needs any peace deal to incorporate guarantees that Russia won’t ever invade once more.
“There has to be talk about what the territories are going to look like and what the border lines are going to look like at the end of this conflict,” Rubio stated Sunday on NBC News.
“There has to be talk about how Ukraine is rebuilt, and how do you rebuild a country that’s been attacked as often as it has over the last three and a half years,” he added.
— CNBC’s Terri Cullen contributed to this report