Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a joint press conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine June 10, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

i24 News — Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that he expects the United States to offer his country security guarantees similar to those Israel has.

Israel is designated by the US as a major non-NATO ally and enjoys significant benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation with Washington. According to the New York Times, some administration officials have pushed the Biden administration to adopt the “Israel model” with Ukraine to send a message of deterrence to Russia.

“With the United States of America we will probably have a model like Israel, where he have weapons and technology and training and finances and so on,” Zelensky said in an interview with Ukrainian television, noting, however, that his country has “a different state and a different enemy.”

The president added that such an agreement wouldn’t depend on who wins the 2024 presidential elections in the US as “these are things that are voted on by the Congress.”

Zelensky underlined that this deal won’t mean that Ukraine is giving up on its goal of joining NATO. Instead, he believes Washington’s security guarantees will assist Ukraine’s path to membership in the US-led alliance.