The debate over “security guarantees” for Ukraine has shifted the spotlight from lofty summit declarations to the harder terrain of military commitments. Within days of the Alaska summit, Western leaders gathered in Washington to wrestle with the practicalities of protecting Kyiv without crossing their own red lines. What emerged is a blueprint that is ambitious in rhetoric, but still riddled with contradictions.

The clearest of these contradictions lies in the very nature of the guarantees being promised. NATO membership, the most credible shield, remains off the table for now. Instead, a coalition of the willing ~ led by European powers – has been tasked with devising arrangements that fall short of formal accession but still reassure Ukraine. This halfway house reflects a desire to deter Russia without triggering the obligations of collective defence. President Donald Trump has sought to thread that needle by ruling out American boots on the ground,........

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