Security pacts future-proof Ukraine against Trump

Ukraine has firmly ruled out any compromises in its war with Russia, according to a senior aide to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, said that while Kiev welcomed advice on how to reach a “just peace”, Ukraine is “not ready to go to the compromise for the very important things and values … independence, freedom, democracy, territorial integrity, sovereignty.”

Yermak’s comments came a day after Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister, suggested that Kiev should agree to a ceasefire with Moscow. Orban, who is known to be close to Russian President Vladimir Putin and who has just taken over the rotating presidency of the European Council, raised the idea during his first wartime visit to Kiev on July 2.

Orban has been the most skeptical of the EU leaders when it comes to European financial and military support for Ukraine. He was instrumental in delaying the agreement of a 50 billion euros (US$54 billion) aid package for several months earlier this year.

But, despite Orban’s reticence, the EU recently agreed to a bilateral security pact with Zelensky while he visited Brussels on June 27.

Under the terms of the deal, “the European Union and its Member States will contribute, for the long term and together with partners, to security commitments to Ukraine, which will help Ukraine to defend itself, resist destabilization efforts and deter acts of aggression in the future.”

The EU deal is the latest of 20 such bilateral agreements, including with the US and major European powers. But while they represent a show of support for Ukraine, they fall short of providing actual security guarantees.

None of Kiev’s partners are willing to deploy troops for the country’s defense,