Trump Envoy Says Putin Agreed to US, Europe Offering NATO-Style Security Assurances for Ukraine

Witkoff said it ‘was the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that.’

President Donald Trump meets with Russia's President Vladimir Putin Friday, Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. At left is Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and second from right is Secretary of State Marco Rubio. AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson

U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff on Aug. 17 said that Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed at the Aug. 15 Alaska peace summit to allow U.S. and European allies to grant Ukraine security protections similar to NATO’s collective defense mandate as part of an impending deal to end the war.

“We were able to win the following concession: That the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO,” Witkoff said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”