Zelensky and Biden ink pivotal 10‑year Ukraine security pact

Presidents Volodymyr Zelensky and Joe Biden signed a 10-year Ukrainian-American security agreement.

On Thursday at the G7 summit in Apulia in southern Italy, Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky signed a bilateral security agreement.

"The parties recognize that this agreement is a supporting bridge to Ukraine's future membership in NATO," the document states. The Ukrainian-American agreement primarily aims to strengthen Kyiv's defence capabilities against Russian invaders, Reuters explains.

- The agreement aims to "lay out the framework for how we will work with Ukraine and other allies to ensure that Ukraine has what it needs, both in terms of physical capabilities as well as intelligence and others," said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Wednesday.

He announced that the details of the agreement would be presented later. He noted that it is meant to be a "bridge" for Ukraine to eventual NATO membership and is intended to ensure Ukraine's defence capabilities for a longer period, although the agreement does not specify exact amounts and values of weapons to be provided.

- By signing this, we will also send a signal to Russia of our determination. If Vladimir Putin thinks he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, he is mistaken. This agreement demonstrates our determination and commitment - emphasised Sullivan.

He also added that the agreement includes Ukrainian commitments to reforms and monitoring the use of the provided weapons. When asked whether the agreement constitutes a security guarantee for Ukraine based on the "Israeli model," he replied that it is rather a Ukrainian model.