American media outlet Axios reports that the US administration is prepared to offer Ukraine security guarantees based on NATO's Article 5, citing an unnamed senior US official. However, the plan reportedly includes Ukraine withdrawing its forces from Donbas and establishing a demilitarized zone there.
According to Axios, negotiations regarding security guarantees that Ukraine would receive from the US and Europe have made significant progress.
An anonymous senior US official told the outlet that President Donald Trump's administration is ready to provide Ukraine with a security guarantee aligned with NATO's Article 5 on collective defense, which treats an attack on one alliance member as an attack on all. The source claimed this guarantee would be approved by Congress and carry legal force.
"We want to give the Ukrainians a security guarantee that on the one hand is not a blank check, and on the other hand is strong enough. We are prepared to send it to Congress for a vote," the official said.
Axios also reported, citing two anonymous White House officials, that a 15 December meeting is expected in Berlin between US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Leaders from Germany, France, and the United Kingdom are also expected to participate.
The Wall Street Journal previously reported on Witkoff's upcoming Berlin visit.
The negotiations aim to reach agreement on the US peace plan, Axios reports. "The White House is pushing Ukraine hard to approve its plan, but the territorial concessions being demanded of Kyiv remain the main sticking point. The American side believes all other issues are close to being resolved and that Zelensky may have proposed a path to progress on territory," the outlet states.
Zelenskyy previously disclosed that America's peace plan calls for Ukrainian forces to withdraw from Donbas while Russian forces would not enter the area. Instead, Washington proposes creating a "free economic zone" or "demilitarized zone." However, Zelenskyy indicated that negotiations on this matter are ongoing.
He suggested that the question of whether the compromises being demanded of Kyiv are fair "will be answered by the people of Ukraine" through a referendum or elections.
A US official told Axios that during a virtual meeting on 12 December, European partners stated they would support Zelenskyy if he proposes a referendum on territorial issues. During the same meeting, Witkoff and Kushner discussed the demilitarized zone plan with national security advisers from Ukraine, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, the outlet reports.
According to a White House official, this exchange and the latest round of US-Ukraine negotiations the day before showed sufficient progress to convince Trump to send his representatives to Europe.
"They [Witkoff and Kushner] believe there is a chance for peace, and the president trusts them," another administration official stated.
One Axios source claimed: "Under the current proposal, the war would end with Ukraine retaining sovereignty over 80% of its territory, receiving the biggest and strongest security guarantees it has ever had, and a very significant prosperity package."
It remains unknown whether Russia will support the American proposals.
The day before, the Office of the President denied reports that Ukraine had allegedly agreed to create a buffer zone in Donbas under the American peace plan.
