He noted that Ukraine possesses one of the world’s largest and most modern armies, which serves as the foundation for its security.
Stubb highlighted that a key outcome of the Aug. 18 White House meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and European leaders was the start of work on the details of future security guarantees for Ukraine. According to Stubb, Europe will support these initiatives, while the United States will coordinate aid and facilitate their implementation.
The Finnish president also emphasized that Russia will not dictate terms to Europe or the United States regarding security guarantees, and decisions on potentially deploying military contingents to Ukraine should be made by allies in coordination with Kyiv.
Ukraine’s security guarantees
The United States and European countries are urgently developing security guarantees for Ukraine to pave the way for a possible meeting between President Zelenskyy and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, according to the Wall Street Journal.
U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders agreed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would lead a special task force, including national security advisors and NATO representatives, to draft these guarantees.
Bloomberg, citing sources, reported that approximately 10 countries are prepared to deploy troops to Ukraine as part of these guarantees.
However, after meetings between Zelenskyy, European leaders, and Trump in the United States, Russian officials began publicly rejecting Europe’s proposals for Ukraine’s security guarantees within a potential peace deal, according to the U.S-based Institute for the Study of War.
On Aug. 19, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas stressed that only robust security guarantees can deter Russia from future attacks.
“Putin cannot be trusted to honour any promise or commitment,” she said.
“Therefore, security guarantees must be strong and credible enough to deter Russia from re-grouping and re-attacking.”