A former minister says it is “totally possible” proposed security guarantees for Ukraine could see Britain go to war. Sir Ben Wallace, who served as defence secretary between 2019 and 2023 under successive Tory governments, says he backs the plans for Ukraine to receive protection similar to NATO’s Article 5 collective defence.
The idea, first put forward by Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, would not see Ukraine join the military alliance. Vladimir Putin has been insistent that Ukraine must not join NATO which he claims is a threat to Russian security. Sir Ben said the proposals, discussed by European leaders and Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, are “strong” but warned of potential implications for Britain.
He told Times Radio: “It is totally possible that we could all go to war if Ukraine is attacked again.
“Remember in 1994 there was a so-called security guarantee delivered by the United States and the Europeans, when Ukraine agreed in exchange for such guarantees to give up its nuclear weapons.
“Russia was also part of that agreement but of course it was one of the many agreements that Putin has broken, and Europe and America ran away from.
“I think ultimately, an Article 5 is a very strong, important measure but it would have to be written in a treaty, it would have to be ratified by our parliaments.”
The NATO-style security guarantee aims to deter Russia from reinvading Ukraine. The Kremlin continues to wage war despite peace talks.
Mr Trump said Mr Putin accepts the protections which special envoy Steve Witkoff earlier described as “game-changing”.
He said the US would provide Ukraine with a “very good security guarantee”, although European countries would be the “first line of defence”.
The American President said he has begun planning for a face-to-face meeting between Mr Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky who said he is “ready” to meet the Russian leader.
European officials say Mr Putin has made it clear during discussions with the US that he wants Ukraine to give up the Donbas region.
British defence intelligence, based on the rate of Russia’s “incremental” battlefield advances so far in 2025, says it would take Russian forces almost four-and-a-half years to gain total control of the four Ukrainian regions it is currently focused on — Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.
Sir Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Finnish President Alexander Stubb all attended the White House summit which came days after Mr Trump held talks with Mr Putin in Alaska.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte were also in attendance.
He told Fox News: “What we are discussing here is not NATO membership, what we are discussing here is Article 5 type of security guarantees for Ukraine and what exactly they will entail will now be more specifically discussed.”
