Zelensky And European Allies Cement Cooperation After Trump Row

AFP/APP

London: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday he would work with Europe to set terms for a possible peace deal to present to the United States, after allies gathered in London pledged to spend more on security and assemble a coalition to defend any truce in Ukraine.

The weekend crisis talks, which brought together 18 allies, came at a delicate moment for war-battered Ukraine, facing uncertain US support and on the back foot against Russia’s three-year invasion.

Days earlier, US President Donald Trump berated Zelensky in front of reporters at the White House, heightening fears he intends to force Kyiv into a peace deal that gives Russian President Vladimir Putin what he wants.

But European leaders closed ranks in support of Kyiv, with Zelensky saying afterwards the summit cemented their commitment to work towards peace.

“We need peace, not endless war,” he said on Telegram.

“In the near future, all of us in Europe will shape our common positions the lines we must achieve and the lines we cannot compromise on,” he added. “These positions will be presented to our partners in the United States.”

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer likewise said that Britain, France “and others” would work with Ukraine on a plan to stop the fighting, which they would then put to Washington.

And French President Emmanuel Macron, flying back from the summit, told Le Figaro newspaper that France and Britain wanted to propose a partial one-month truce “in the air, at sea and on energy infrastructure”.

Starmer and Macron have said they are prepared to deploy British and French troops to Ukraine to help preserve any truce.

With no guarantee of US involvement, “Europe must do the heavy lifting”, Starmer said.