For the first time, Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to include a collective defense clause in a potential peace deal for Ukraine, according to U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.
In an interview with CNN, Witkoff said the draft deal was designed as an alternative to Ukraine’s full NATO membership – a longstanding red line for Moscow.
“Instead of formally joining the Alliance, the U.S. and European countries would provide security guarantees with wording similar to NATO’s Article 5, which obliges all members to defend one another,” Witkoff explained.
He added that Putin had made it clear NATO membership for Ukraine was unacceptable, but negotiations assumed Kyiv might accept an alternative arrangement.
“Everything depends on what the Ukrainians can accept. Based on that, we secured this concession – that the U.S. and other European countries could provide Article 5-like guarantees as part of the security framework,” Witkoff noted.
So far, neither Putin nor senior Russian officials have publicly commented on the Trump administration’s interpretation of the talks.
