Biden, Zelenskyy Enter Long-Term Agreement

(USNewsBreak.com) – Ukraine has battled against Russia since President Vladimir Putin’s troops invaded in February 2022. Over the past few years, the country has relied on Western allies to provide it with the weapons it needs to fight its aggressors. In particular, the United States has provided billions in aid to help Ukraine’s defense. Now, Presidents Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelenskyy have reached a long-term agreement.

On Thursday, June 13, Biden announced that he and Zelenskyy had signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement. This deal will “strengthen Ukraine’s credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the long term,” according to the President.

Over the next 10 years, the two nations will work together to ensure Ukraine can sustain its fight and accelerate its integration into NATO. The US also agreed to provide consulting to Ukraine should Russia engage in another armed conflict in the future. The ultimate goal, per Biden, is “just peace.”

President Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sign 10-year security deal https://t.co/NIo2ltoupC pic.twitter.com/8diooOSzg8

— CBSColorado (@CBSNewsColorado) June 13, 2024

The Group of Seven (G7) summit took place the same week in Italy. At the gathering, several countries agreed to loan Ukraine $50 billion, using frozen Russian assets as collateral. Moreover, the group freed up over $280 billion in Russian assets that it might use to assist Ukraine. The goal is to show Putin that he cannot wait out the West, and per Biden, “we’re not backing down.” The G7 has also agreed to place sanctions on countries helping Russia’s war efforts.

President Zelenskyy spoke out after signing the deal and said it was a “historic day” for his country. He called the latest agreement “the strongest […] between Ukraine and the US since [Ukraine’s] independence.”

When asked if he had a contingency plan in place should the next US president not honor the deal, Zelenskyy said, “If the people are with us, any leader will be with us in this struggle for freedom.” He went on to say that world unity depends on Ukraine defeating Russia.