Volodymyr Zelenskyy‚ Ukraineʼs President‚ has shared parts of his five-point plan to push Russia towards ending the war through talks. A key part of this plan is getting a formal invite to join NATO‚ which Western supporters have been slow to think about until the war is over.
Zelenskyy told Ukraineʼs Parliament about the plan on 10/13/24 (keeping some parts secret) that have been shown to main allies like the United States.
The first part of the plan is about getting Ukraine invited to join NATO soon. While this doesnt mean Ukraine would join right away‚ it would show that Western partners see Ukraine as part of their “security setup“ Zelenskyy said. He thinks this invite is “really important for peace“ in Ukraine.
NATO partners have been slow to invite Ukraine while the war goes on‚ and Zelenskyyʼs request puts them in a tough spot. Since the big attack started about 2 years and 8 months ago NATO has tried to find ways to bring Ukraine closer without giving a real invite.
At their meeting in Washington about 3 months ago‚ NATOʼs 32 members said Ukraine was on a path to join that cant be changed. But they probably wont decide about starting talks to join until their next meeting in the Netherlands in about 8 months.
The second part of the plan is about making Ukraineʼs army stronger‚ not just to push back Russian troops but “to bring the war back to the Russian territory.“ This includes:
- Keeping up attacks in Russia
- Making air defense better
- Working with nearby countries to stop Russian missiles and drones
- Using more Ukrainian drones and missiles
- Getting rid of rules about using Western weapons for long-range attacks on military targets in Russia
- Getting more intelligence from allies and real-time satellite info
Western partners have been careful about Ukraine using given weapons for anything but defense‚ scared of getting pulled into the fight. Ukraine has been asking the U.S. to drop its rules on using long-range Western weapons to hit deep inside Russia‚ but the U.S. government hasnt changed its mind even after Zelenskyy visited Washington D.C. a few months ago.
The third part of the plan is about putting a “big non-nuclear deterrence package“ in Ukraine to protect it from any military threat from Russia. Zelenskyy didnt give many details‚ but said it would be used against specific Russian military targets‚ meaning Russia would “face the loss of its war machine.“
The fourth part is about growing Ukraineʼs economy and making sanctions against Russia stronger. Zelenskyy said Ukraine has lots of important natural resources “worth trillions of U.S. dollars“ like uranium titanium‚ lithium‚ graphite. He said these resources and Ukraineʼs ability to make energy and food are some of Russiaʼs main goals in this war.
The last part is about what happens after the war. Zelenskyy said Ukraine will have a big army of soldiers with real war experience after the fight is over. He thinks this experience should be used to make NATO stronger and keep Europe safe. He even said‚ if partners agree Ukrainian units could replace some U.S. troops in Europe.
This plan shows Zelenskyyʼs big ideas for ending the war and making Ukraine stronger. But it also brings up tough questions for NATO and Western allies about how to support Ukraine without making the conflict bigger