Washington D.C.,August 18(HS): Russia has tentatively agreed to allow the United States and European allies to extend “robust” security guarantees to Ukraine as part of ongoing peace negotiations, Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has revealed.

Speaking after last week’s Trump-Putin summit in Alaska, Witkoff told CNN that Moscow had accepted discussions on an “Article 5-like” framework—mirroring NATO’s mutual defence clause—as a possible alternative to Ukraine’s accession to the alliance, which Vladimir Putin has long opposed.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, heading into high-stakes talks at the White House alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron, Germany’s Friedrich Merz, and EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, hailed the potential guarantees as “historic.” But he insisted they must constitute “real protection on land, in the air, and at sea.” Macron, for his part, vowed to “present a united front” and warned that European weakness today “will cost dearly tomorrow.”

Behind the optimism, fault lines remain. Witkoff confirmed that Russia wants Ukraine to withdraw from Donetsk in exchange for halting advances in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson—terms Kyiv has flatly rejected. Zelensky has warned that any territorial concessions would be unconstitutional and risk emboldening Moscow for future offensives.

The White House meeting marks Zelensky’s first visit since a bitter clash with Trump earlier this year, but recent behind-the-scenes diplomacy has sought to repair ties. Still, images of Putin’s red-carpet welcome in Alaska have unsettled Kyiv and Europe alike, underscoring both the promise and peril of Trump’s effort to broker an end to Europe’s deadliest war in generations.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar