Ukraine Seeks Clear Security Guarantees As Russia Pounds Power Grid

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday he has yet to receive a “clear, unequivocal answer” from European allies on whether they would militarily defend Ukraine if Russia launched new attacks after a future peace deal, as Moscow unleashed fresh deadly strikes across the war-torn country.

Zelenskyy’s remarks followed another wave of Russian attacks late Wednesday that knocked out electricity almost entirely in two southeastern regions amid plunging winter temperatures.

European leaders and U.S. envoys said earlier this week they had agreed on “key security guarantees” for Kyiv, including plans for a European multinational force to be deployed should a ceasefire be reached. Yet Zelenskyy said assurances remain vague.

“I personally very much want to get a very simple answer: yes, if there is aggression again, all partners will give a strong response to the Russians,” Zelenskyy said. “So far, I haven’t received a clear, unequivocal answer.”

He stressed that while there is strong “political will” among Ukraine’s allies, Kyiv needs legally binding security guarantees, approved by parliaments and backed by the U.S. Congress, before it can rely on them.

BRITISH DEBATE OVER TROOP DEPLOYMENT

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer said lawmakers would have an opportunity to vote on the deployment of British troops to Ukraine if a peace deal is reached. However, he could not confirm whether such a vote would occur before any deployment.

Starmer told Parliament that British forces could conduct deterrence operations and help build and protect military hubs. However, he acknowledged uncertainties over troop numbers and parliamentary approval.

During the debate, Conservative lawmaker Ben Obese-Jecty warned that Western “boots on the ground” could be seen by Moscow as a red line, potentially undermining peace efforts.

Russia’s overnight strikes left the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions almost entirely without electricity, Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said.

Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko warned that snowfalls and temperatures dropping to minus 20 degrees Celsius could worsen power and heating disruptions.

RUSSIAN STRIKES KILL AT LEAST ONE

Separately, Russian attacks on the Black Sea ports of Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi in Ukraine’s Odesa region killed at least one person and wounded eight others, officials said. The ports are critical to Ukraine’s agricultural exports.

“This is yet another attack by a terrorist country on port infrastructure that helps ensure global food security,” Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said.

Despite the ongoing war, Ukraine’s foreign currency reserves rose to a record $57.3 billion at the start of January, the central bank reported, driven by sustained international financial support.

Ukraine’s military spending has surged from about $7 billion in 2021 to more than $70 billion last year.

The government remains heavily dependent on foreign aid to fund defense, humanitarian relief, and social services as the armed conflict grinds on.

More than one million people are believed to have been killed or injured since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February, 2022.

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