Diplomacy and money: Ukraine's mid-June 2024

What was shaping Ukraine's position on 17 June 2024? In the days before that date, three developments pulled in different directions: a Russian ceasefire offer that Kyiv rejected, a long-term security pledge from Washington, and a European decision to channel money from frozen Russian assets.

Moscow's terms, Kyiv's refusal

On 14 June 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he was ready for a ceasefire if Ukraine withdrew from Russian-claimed territories, including areas Ukraine had liberated, and abandoned its accession to NATO. Ukraine rejected the offer. The conditions asked Kyiv to give up both territory and its stated course towards the alliance, which helps explain why the proposal went nowhere.

Security and financial backing

The day before, on 13 June 2024, US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a ten-year security agreement intended to strengthen Ukraine's defensive capabilities. Two days earlier, on 11 June 2024, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the European Union would give Ukraine €3.4 billion (about $3.6 billion) over the summer, drawn from revenue on frozen Russian assets.

Taken together, these steps set a clear contrast. Russia's proposal demanded concessions, while Ukraine's partners offered a decade-long commitment from the United States and near-term funding from the EU.

A regional aside on 17 June

On 17 June 2024 itself, the regional news included a dispute between two of Ukraine's neighbours' partners. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk ordered Germany to explain a recorded incident in which German police appeared to abandon a migrant family in Osinów Dolny, just east of the Germany–Poland border. It was unrelated to the war, but it showed that border questions could strain relations between allies in the region.