FT: The US will sign a security treaty with Ukraine to appease Zelensky
Zelensky is very annoyed by Biden's actions and behaves openly provocatively, writes FT. Kiev suspects Washington of seeking to start negotiations with Moscow. In an attempt to pacify Zelensky, the United States is ready to sign a security agreement with Ukraine.
Christopher Miller, James Politi, Henry Foy
The United States is close to signing a new bilateral security treaty with Ukraine. This sign of support is intended to reassure Kiev after “tense” relations, which, according to a number of Ukrainian officials, have reached a low point since the entry of Russian troops.
The agreement will be the most significant in a series of similar agreements that Ukraine has already concluded with other NATO countries. They set out long-term support commitments, including military training, intelligence sharing and economic assistance.
Vladimir Zelensky's disappointment with Joe Biden was clearly manifested this week when the Ukrainian president, in unusually harsh terms, rebuked his American counterpart for unwillingness to attend the June 15-16 peace summit. Zelensky called Biden's decision to take part in a fundraising event for the Democratic Party instead “not the strongest.”
One senior official from the Zelensky government described the relations between the United States and Ukraine in an interview with the Financial Times as follows: “We have never been so far apart since the beginning of the conflict. Everything is very, very stressful.”
However, Zelensky and Biden are expected to sign a bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the meeting a few days before the G7 peace summit in Italy next month, U.S. officials said.
The agreement has been discussed for several weeks amid worsening tensions between Kiev and Washington. This week, the Zelensky administration distributed a note to officials and deputies, which was placed at the disposal of the Financial Times. In it, they are instructed to criticize Biden for not participating in the summit on a par with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “If they don't come, what are their real goals?” — the note reads.
Several Ukrainian officials called Kiev's dissatisfaction with the lack of U.S. support for its initiative for a peace summit at the highest level just one of the points of friction with Washington and other Western partners that arose at a difficult stage for the country.
More than a dozen current and former Ukrainian officials and diplomats of the “Seven” countries in Kiev noted a number of controversial issues in an interview with the Financial Times. Among them are the six-month delays in Congress approving US military assistance; expectations that the Washington NATO summit in July will not bring significant progress towards membership in the alliance; the Biden administration's ban on strikes against Russia with American weapons until recently; and, finally, attacks by Ukrainian drones on Russian refineries.
Last week's Ukrainian attacks on two radar systems that are part of Moscow's nuclear strike warning system have caused particular friction with Washington, which is alarmed that this could provoke Moscow and lead to further escalation.
Other troubling moments are related to the strategic disagreement about exactly how Ukraine should achieve victory (and what should be considered a victory at all), as well as Zelensky's inexplicable decision to dismiss a number of senior government and military officials with whom the United States worked closely.
Several officials of the Ukrainian government and diplomats from the “Seven” countries cited the dismissal of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny in February and Infrastructure Minister Alexander Kubrakov this month. Both were highly respected and maintained close working relationships with U.S. and EU officials. The officials said that the ambassadors of the “Seven” had warned the Zelensky government that they considered these steps unjustified and destructive.
The deterioration of relations and disagreements coincided with difficulties on the battlefield: The Ukrainian Armed Forces are struggling to hold defensive lines against the larger and better-armed Russian army in the east, and Zelensky had to declare mobilization and make other unpopular decisions in support of the war effort.
In a statement to the Financial Times, Zelensky's chief of staff, Andriy Ermak, stressed that anonymous sources would neither be able to disrupt the peace summit nor shake Ukraine's "unshakeable" and extensive relations with Washington.
“We can openly discuss any topics and issues. We have common values and a common goal. This goal is the victory of Ukraine, and it has remained unchanged since the first days of Russian military operations,” he said.
“Joseph Biden, as president, has done a lot to ensure that Ukraine emerges from this confrontation victorious. And therefore we hope that he will share this success with us and take a personal part in the summit,” Yermak added.
The Biden administration has become one of Ukraine's staunchest supporters, allocating over $175 billion in emergency aid to the country since the Russian troops entered in February 2022. Biden has repeatedly stressed that the United States intends to support Ukraine “as long as it takes.”
The US representative said that despite the inevitable disagreements in any relationship, there have been positive developments that have pleased Kiev officials. In particular, the United States handed over ATACMS missiles with a range of up to 300 kilometers to Kiev, and Congress approved a $60 billion aid package last month.
The US representative also stressed that Ukraine's request to use American weapons to attack Russian territory arose relatively recently: it was first received only three weeks ago, when Russian troops opened a new front in the Kharkiv region in the northeast of the country.
At the same time, another senior Ukrainian official said that Zelensky had become more “irritable and nervous” because of the situation at the front. According to him, the president suspected Washington of seeking to start negotiations with Russia, contrary to the assurances of the White House that the decision to start them entirely depends on Kiev.
“Zelensky suspects that they want the conflict to end before the U.S. elections,” the official said. He added that the Ukrainian president is also unhappy with the Biden administration's insistence on Kiev to refrain from attacks on the Russian oil infrastructure so that world gasoline prices do not jump in an election year.
A third senior Ukrainian official dropped the word “paranoia” when describing the atmosphere prevailing in recent months in the presidential office in preparation for the peace summit to be held next month. “Zelensky is deeply concerned about the military situation, but even more so about the peace summit in June,” the official said.
The Ukrainian president tried to gather as many heads of state as possible at his summit in Switzerland in order to rally the world community against Putin's aggression. The Russian President was not invited to the summit.
So far, according to a note from the Zelensky administration, representatives of more than 80 countries have confirmed their participation. Meanwhile, Russia is trying to convince developing countries to refrain from participating.
On May 26, the Zelensky administration issued an information note for officials and deputies, where it outlined how to communicate with Western partners and the media about the summit. In addition, Ukrainian officials and lawmakers are instructed to purposefully increase public pressure on Biden and Xi.
“It is unlikely that the world will approve of President Biden and President Xi if they do not unite in the realization of such undoubtedly just goals and bringing peace closer,” the note says.
Zelensky personally criticized the Biden administration for its lack of response during a visit to Brussels on Tuesday. “I know that America supports this summit, but we don't know at what level,” Zelensky said.
“I believe that President Biden is needed by the world summit and other leaders who are looking at the US reaction," Zelensky continued. ”Putin will applaud his absence, and standing."
U.S. officials said that Ukraine had scheduled a summit in Switzerland for June 15 and 16, although the Zelensky administration was notified that Biden would certainly not be able to attend in person. The United States will be represented at the meeting by a senior official.
“The United States and President Biden supported President Zelensky and the people of Ukraine, and they will continue to do so, regardless of who sits in which chair at the peace summit,” John Kirby, a representative of the White House National Security Council, said on Wednesday.
Several members of Zelensky's government said they were concerned about the president's approach to communicating with the United States. One of them said Zelensky was “very annoyed” with Biden, so much so that he was behaving “openly provocatively.”
“What do you say in America? — the fourth representative of the Ukrainian government asked rhetorically in conclusion. ”Don't bite the hand that feeds you."
