Jared Kushner is proposing a Europe-wide security framework ahead of next week’s US-Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi, while Trump says a “big wonderful deal” could cover all of Europe, not just Ukraine. Trump spoke after meeting Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev on November 5.
The Framework
Kushner says Trump has discussed a broader European security architecture with European leaders. The goals he sets out include regular security consultations, crisis communications, military transparency, measures to reduce escalation risks and a long-term framework between Europe and Russia. He also says national sovereignty must be respected. No country should have a veto over another’s choices. And NATO must remain central to Europe’s defence.
Kushner says the US, Ukraine and European partners discussed security guarantees for Ukraine in Brussels. He wants consultations with Ukraine, NATO, the EU and European partners to continue in the Shell Bay format. The next step is the trilateral meeting planned for Abu Dhabi next week.
The Kremlin’s Old Demand
A “new security architecture” is not neutral language in this war. Moscow demanded one in draft treaties it presented to the US and NATO in December 2021, two months before its full-scale invasion. Those texts sought restrictions on NATO’s military presence near Russia’s borders. Putin has long tried to recast his decision to invade Ukraine as a response to Europe’s failure to accommodate Russian security demands.
That history makes the details of Kushner’s proposal matter. Consultations and crisis hotlines are one thing. “Mutual” measures to reduce escalation could become something very different if they mean limits on troops or weapons on NATO’s eastern flank. Kushner’s commitments to sovereignty, countries’ freedom of choice and NATO’s role point the other way. The question for the talks is whether those commitments govern the framework, or get bargained against Moscow’s demands.
Trump’s Bigger Deal
Trump says the agreement he expects will go beyond ending the war in Ukraine and cover security across Europe. He predicts every side will be happy with it. His November 5 meeting with Dmitriev puts that sweeping pitch beside an active channel to Putin’s envoy, just before the Abu Dhabi round.
Europe’s security cannot be negotiated as compensation for Russia’s invasion.
Ukraine’s right to choose its future and NATO allies’ right to defend their territory are not concessions for the Kremlin to collect at the table.
