Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he is “exchangeable” for Ukrainian membership of NATO, and suggested he was ready to sign a minerals deal with the US.
ITV News also understands there is a joint initiative between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron to secure a one-month air and sea truce agreement.
Speaking to reporters at Stansted Airport before he left the UK, the Ukrainian president was asked if he could stand down in the event his country becomes a NATO member.
“I am exchangeable for NATO,” he was reported to have said in Ukrainian, via a translator.
Zelenskyy added: “I have said that I am exchanging for NATO membership, then it means I have fulfilled my mission. NATO means I have fulfilled my mission.”
He also told reporters that Ukraine was “ready to sign it” when asked about the minerals deal with America that was put on hold after his stormy meeting with Donald Trump.
Trump has presented the minerals deal with Ukraine as essential for compensating the military aid supplied to Ukraine during its conflict with Russia.
The agreement is said to create a “reconstruction investment fund,” with half of the revenue from Ukraine’s state-owned natural resource projects being allocated to it.
While Zelenskyy has advocated for the deal to offer stronger security guarantees for Ukraine, Trump has stated that he would prioritize securing better security for Ukraine at “a later time”.
He sees the deal as crucial for the US to produce batteries, armour, defence materials and nuclear fuel, rather than relying on China and Russia for the minerals.
US ambassador Peter Mandelson told American network ABC on Sunday that Ukraine and other European leaders should give “unequivocal backing” to Trump’s plans to end the war – a comment that was slapped down by the UK government on Monday.
Armed Forces Minister Luke Pollard told ITV News: “Our ambassador to the US was not right in that particular comment that he made.
“I want to focus more on what we’re going to do next, rather than any comments that may come from an ambassador, or a President, or a leader, because ultimately it’s securing the peace that is the UK objective”, he said.
Starmer will return to the Commons on Monday for the first time since his spree of diplomatic action across the Atlantic and in London.
This weekend, the prime minister told European leaders they must realise it is “time to act”, and warned they stand at a “crossroads in history”.
After using himself as a bargaining chip, Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for Europe and America’s support. But, he stressed there could be no peace deal without security guarantees.
On X he wrote: “As a result of these days, we see clear support from Europe. Even more unity, even more willingness to cooperate.
“Everyone is united on the main issue – for peace to be real, we need real security guarantees.
“Of course, we understand the importance of America, and we are grateful for all the support we’ve received from the United States. There has not been a day when we haven’t felt gratitude.
“It’s gratitude for the preservation of our independence – our resilience in Ukraine is based on what our partners are doing for us – and for their own security.
“What we need is peace, not endless war. And that’s why we say security guarantees are the key to this.”
On Sunday, Starmer said European leaders would devise a plan to end the war in Ukraine and present it to the United States.
He also announced a £1.6 billion finance deal, which will allow Ukraine to buy more than 5,000 missiles.
Zelenskyy and other world leaders were in London earlier on Sunday to discuss a united approach to ending the war in Ukraine.
When asked about the involvement of the United States, Starmer said the country is “not an unreliable ally”.
“The US has been a reliable ally to the UK for many, many decades, and continues to be,” he added.
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