Friday, December 5, marked the 31st anniversary of the signing of the Budapest Memorandum. For Ukraine, however, the date is no longer a celebration of diplomacy, but a grim reminder of a "failed security agreement."
According to a report by RBC-Ukraine, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha used the anniversary to deliver a stark message to the international community: Kyiv has exhausted its faith in paper guarantees and now relies solely on hard power.
A Bitter Lesson in Trust
Taking to the social media platform X, Minister Sybiha did not mince words regarding the 1994 document, which once stood as a pillar of nuclear non-proliferation.
"31 years ago, on this day, the Budapest Memorandum was signed. The text is synonymous with a failed security agreement," Sybiha wrote.
He continued, outlining a fundamental shift in Ukraine's defense philosophy born from the scars of war: "Having gone through bitter experiences in the past, Ukraine no longer believes in empty promises – we trust in the strength of our army and our weapons."
Sybiha emphasized that while Ukraine remains committed to ending the Russian aggression, any future settlement must be built on "reliable security guarantees" that ensure a just and lasting peace, rather than the non-binding assurances of the past.
What Was the Budapest Memorandum?
Signed on December 5, 1994, the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances was a landmark diplomatic agreement. In exchange for Ukraine voluntarily surrendering its nuclear arsenal which was the world's third-largest at the time the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States provided security assurances.
Under the terms of the agreement:
The signatories pledged to respect Ukraine's independence, sovereignty, and existing borders.
They committed to refraining from the threat or use of force against Ukraine's territorial integrity or political independence.
The text explicitly stated that no weapons would ever be used against Ukraine except in self-defense or in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.
The parties also promised not to use economic pressure to influence Ukraine's foreign policy decisions.
The Collapse of the Agreement
The document's credibility was first fractured in 2014 with Russia's annexation of Crimea and the ignition of conflict in Eastern Ukraine. It was shattered completely by the full-scale invasion launched in February 2022.
Global observers have noted that Russia's actions constitute a direct violation of every core principle of the Memorandum. The failure of the signatories to prevent this aggression has sparked a global debate on the viability of nuclear disarmament as a security strategy for smaller nations.
Despite the evident breach of sovereignty, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently claimed that Moscow’s actions against Ukraine do not violate the Memorandum's terms a stance that Kyiv dismisses as a distortion of reality.
For Ukraine, the lesson of December 5 is clear: National survival depends not on the signatures of foreign powers, but on the capability of its own armed forces.