Spain says reinforcing Ukraine's army is 'best' security guarantee

GENEVA

Spain's foreign minister on Tuesday said that the "best" security guarantee for Ukraine is strengthening its armed forces so it can defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

"The best security guarantee for Ukraine so far today, talking with the reality on the ground, is to reinforce the Ukrainian army, because that's what's providing today, safety, sovereignty, freedom for Ukraine, and that's what we are doing, providing military equipment to make sure that the Ukrainian army is capable of guaranteeing sovereignty and territorial integrity for Ukraine," Jose Manuel Albares told Bloomberg.

Asked whether Spain would back NATO-style Article 5 guarantees for Kyiv, he stressed that "Article 5 is not something that is on the table right now."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday welcomed what she described as US President Donald Trump's "willingness to contribute to Article 5-like security guarantees for Ukraine," saying the EU is "ready to do its share."

Article 5 of the NATO treaty enshrines the principle of collective defense, meaning an attack on one member is considered an attack on all.

Albares also highlighted Spain's contribution to Ukraine's defense, pointing to "military equipment of all sorts, financial assistance, humanitarian assistance with 200,000 Ukrainian refugees in our soil," and support for EU accession talks.

"We have been giving all the support that Ukraine has been asking for and requesting," he said.

He stressed the importance of transatlantic unity, saying Europe and the US must remain aligned to secure a “just and lasting peace” in Ukraine and safeguard Euro-Atlantic security.

Rejecting suggestions that Madrid's absence from a recent US-Ukraine meeting at White House, where some EU leaders along NATO chief were also present, was linked to NATO burden-sharing disputes, the minister said Spain remains a "very committed ally" with "a historical deployment of troops in the Eastern Flank of NATO, with 3000 soldiers, tanks, airplanes."

He added the commitment of Spain to Europe is "out of question."