US & Ukraine Sign Ten Year Long Term Security Agreement At G7

✪ The agreement follows months of negotiations between the US and Ukraine and is expected to commit the US for 10 years to continued training of Ukraine’s armed forces, more cooperation in the production of weapons and military equipment, the continued provision of military assistance and greater intelligence sharing...

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he move is a key ‘deliverable’ of Biden’s G7 meetings set in the Apulia region of Italy Thursday. The president arrived last night and meets one on one with Zelensky before the two leaders are set to hold a joint press conference Thursday evening local time.

‘We want to demonstrate that the U.S. supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that we’ll continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future,’ White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the annual confab.

‘This is a big deal,’ he added Thursday. He called it a ‘real marker of our commitment, not just for this month, this year, but for many years ahead, to continue to support Ukraine, both in defending against Russian aggression and in deterring future aggression.

However, the bilateral deal would not have the strength of a treaty ratified by the U.S. Senate, so Biden or any successor could withdraw from it at a later date.

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Sources familiar with the matter told CNN the pact is expected to be an “executive agreement,” which is less formal than a treaty and nonbinding for future presidents. The agreement is expected to last for 10 years, with the US committing to the continued training of Ukraine’s troops, cooperation in producing weapons and equipment, greater intelligence sharing and the continued providence of military assistance.

Two of the sources stated that the expected agreement does not include a specific monetary pledge for Ukraine’s defenses. One of the sources said that an annex in the agreement will detail how the Biden Administration plans to work with Congress on spending for the security commitments.

The agreement between the US and Ukraine will reportedly be similar to other bilateral agreements Ukraine has signed with 14 other countries, including Germany, France and the UK. 17 other countries have reportedly committed to negotiating similar pacts

National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said on Tuesday that the US’ commitment to Ukraine “will continue to be right up front and clear” at the G7, and that the US “will take bold steps to show Mr. Putin that time is not on his side and that he cannot outlast us, as we support Ukraine fight for freedom.”

Another deal emerging from the G7 meetings is an agreement to provide Ukraine with a $50 billion loan amid its territorial losses to Russian forces.

President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet during the summit, Kirby said, and the US will also announce steps to unlock Russia’s frozen assets for use in Ukraine’s reconstruction after the war ends.

The money comes from interest on $300 million in seized Russian assets – and gets around opposition from within the alliance to using those funds.

Details were still being worked out and administration officials were loath to confirm earlier reporting on the outlines of the deal. But the funds could reach Kiev by year’s end.

Sullivan told reporters Thursday morning that progress was likely, but he stopped short of offering guarantees on Russian sovereign assets and other issues. ‘I think we’re teed up for success in that regard … we’ll have to see how the next two days unfold,’ he said.

Sullivan stopped short of promising immediate success. He said it wouldn’t come today, and said leaders were on ‘the verge of a good outcome.’ ‘I think we will have the major tent poles of this decided,’ he said, with some of the specifics yet to be resolved.

The agreement comes as the US-Ukrainian relationship has begun to recover after faltering late last year and into this year amid a congressional fight over additional US funding for Ukraine – something Biden personally apologized to Zelensky for during a meeting in Paris last week.

Biden also recently agreed to allow Ukraine to use US-provided weapons to strike into Russia directly, a major shift that Ukraine had been asking for months as Russia pummeled Kharkiv with missiles from just across the border.✪