On the one hand, the Washington-Kiev deal, with Ukraine's promise to buy US weapons worth one hundred billion dollars (with European Union money). On the other, the plan to say goodbye to NATO – an essential condition for Moscow – and simultaneously adopt a protection system (including military) by the countries intending to join in the event of a new Russian invasion. In the aftermath of the meeting with Donald Trump at the White House, European leaders are trying to find common ground on which to first converge and then work at the (eventual) negotiating table. Specifically: security guarantees of Ukraine.

At the end of the video conference with EU leaders, the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, dusted off Giorgia Meloni's proposal to sign an agreement similar to NATO's Article 5 – in short, to defend Ukraine in the event of an external attack – without Kiev joining NATO itself."It's time," Costa said,"to accelerate our concrete work to implement a guarantee similar to NATO's Article 5, with the continued commitment of the United States." Regarding the Coalition of the Willing (i.e., countries ready to commit militarily to Ukraine, led by France), he added that"it must remain closely involved in this process. The Ukrainian armed forces will be the first line of defense: this is why we must strengthen, enhance, and unlock our military support to Ukraine." The EU is already Kiev's largest provider of military and economic support, he stressed,"and we will continue to evaluate how we can do more. After three and a half years of war, momentum is growing around security guarantees, including Trump's agreement to participate in this effort." Following the phone call with Volodymyr Zelensky, Costa said that"our top priorities are to stop the killings, facilitate the prisoner exchange, and secure the return of the thousands of children deported from Russia." And that, speaking of alliances, “Ukraine’s future also lies in the prosperity and stability that EU membership can offer.”

In essence, the new agreement would establish that Ukraine cannot be attacked, while simultaneously avoiding a hostile act against Moscow such as building NATO bases just within its borders. Trump, last February, had declared himself in favor, adding however that Article 5 would not be necessary because"in Ukraine we will have a strong and lasting peace." Who knows, perhaps after the summit with Vladimir Putin has changed his mind. Be that as it may, Meloni's proposal – now supported by Costa – would make sense to involve the greatest possible number of states (not necessarily all NATO states). Obviously, including the United States.