Europe rolls out the red carpet for Zelensky in London
Europe rolls out the red carpet for Zelensky in London
Ukraine Europe tries again without Trump
France and Britain propose a one-month ceasefire. Starmer: We are at a crossroads in history. A one-month ceasefire and then a coalition of volunteers in case of a peace agreement, which in any case must be achieved only with Kyiv at the negotiating table.
These are the points that European countries are trying to build a structure upon to maintain the security and sovereignty of Ukraine after the painful rift displayed in the White House.
We have agreed that Britain, France, and others will work with Ukraine on a plan to stop the war, Keir Starmer said. We will then present that plan to the United States and move forward with it together.
He clarified that the purpose of this meeting was to bring together our partners to strengthen Ukraine and support a just and lasting peace. We must start by placing Ukraine in the strongest possible position to negotiate from a position of power. In total, 19 leaders joined the upcoming summit in the British capital.
In addition to Volodymyr Zelensky and European representatives and leaders, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau were also present.
From Lancaster House, Starmer announced that a new budget worth 2 billion euros has been allocated to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense and urged those present to unite. Europe is at a historical crossroads and must step forward and unite around a new plan for a just and lasting peace. He added to reporters: If we want to maintain peace, we must be ready to defend it.
The spread of disaster worldwide
The London meeting was held while the shock from the Friday afternoon confrontation in the Oval Office of the White House was still felt. There, President Donald Trump and his deputy J.D. Vance attacked Zelensky.
What was supposed to be a face-to-face meeting to reach an agreement on Ukraine’s mineral reserves, which would strengthen Washington’s support for Kyiv in potential negotiations with Russia, turned into an unprecedented diplomatic disaster. Before the astonished eyes of those present, the US President and his deputy sharply reminded the Ukrainian leader of his weak position in negotiations and reproached him for not appreciating American aid.
After 40 minutes of live debate on global television, the agreement was canceled, and the Ukrainian delegation was asked to leave the White House.
Shortly after, Zelensky appeared on Fox News to apologize to the American people but did not apologize to the US President.
In Washington, Trump’s loyalists welcomed his change of stance and harshly criticized the Ukrainian President, who had asked Trump for strong security guarantees to deter Russia, which began its massive attack in February 2022, from violating the ceasefire in the future.
Trump is closer to Putin
According to the Washington Post, this encounter has revealed the growing rift between Europe and the Trump administration, which is now threatening to cut support for Ukraine at one of Kyiv’s most critical and vulnerable moments since the war began.
Even before Trump expelled the Ukrainian delegation from the White House, the new administration had gradually shown its distance from its allies. In early February, Trump contacted Vladimir Putin and announced his intention to normalize relations with him.
Since then, on several occasions, his officials have shown their readiness to accept many of the Kremlin’s demands regarding Ukraine, while this major businessman has called Zelensky a dictator and expressed hope that he would be removed from office.
Last week, on the third anniversary of the US attack, along with Moscow, they voted against a UN resolution supported by Kyiv and Europe. This resolution condemned Russia’s aggression and called for the return of Ukraine’s occupied territories.
US efforts to end Moscow’s isolation also lay the groundwork for a plan to restart the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which connects Russia to Germany and is pursued by the Russians with the support of American investors.
Trump is also trying to use his closer relations with Russia to create a rift between Moscow and Beijing.
He believes that if Russia distances itself from China, it could benefit the United States, as a strong alliance between Russia and China could pose a serious threat to American and Western interests.
In the past, Trump was worried about the close relations between China and Russia and tried to pressure Moscow by getting closer to Putin to reduce its ties with China. This strategy could strengthen the US position on the global stage, as a united front between Russia and China could create more power against the West.
Rebuilding, yes, but how?
While there are still many issues regarding European defense, at least concerning Ukraine, the London meeting yielded immediate results. Gideon Rachman says London made it clear with a warm welcome to Zelensky among European leaders that the Ukrainian leader and his country are not alone.
But more importantly, Starmer and Macron may have temporarily taken the diplomatic initiative from Trump and Putin.
By announcing that European countries will work with Ukraine on a peace proposal, which will then be presented to the United States, they have made it harder for Trump to consider this issue as one that should be negotiated solely between the US and Russia.
After Paris and London, Europeans will gather on Thursday in Brussels to address another topic on the agenda: European security. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Sunday that the meeting will focus on how we can do more for our defense.
This question is becoming a more serious concern every day in European capitals, where there is fear of a sudden and destructive US disengagement from the continent. The European Union is working on a plan to rebuild armaments, the details of which were shared on Monday, March 3, by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen with member countries.
But it is clear that this will not be easy.
US allies across the European Union and beyond urgently need an alternative option for collective security in a world where the US government now seems to prefer Putin over Zelensky.
The extraordinary EU leaders’ summit, which will be held this Thursday in Brussels, will collectively examine options and also answer the question of whether and to what extent what was previously discussed in Paris and then in London can be implemented in the name of the 27 countries.
In fact, Hungary and Slovakia were not invited to previous meetings, nor were the four neutral EU countries: Ireland, Austria, Malta, and Cyprus. Meanwhile, Romania and the Czech Republic are on the brink of sensitive electoral deadlines.
New sanctions against Moscow, the sixteenth package since 2022, which is now finalized, must be unanimously approved. Even the use of EU or joint financial resources to supply military equipment to Kyiv requires a certain level of agreement among partners.
Regarding the possibility, which is still being discussed informally, of sending a European security guarantee force to Ukraine after a potential future ceasefire, it is clear to everyone that the number of countries willing to follow Britain and France is still small, as Starmer has pointed out. What Macron stated yesterday in an interview with Le Figaro, that the discussed ceasefire will be one month long and will not include ground conflicts, certainly has not helped increase the number of countries supporting this plan.
Many of these points clearly depend on the framework, context, and conditions in which this potential coalition of volunteers can be deployed.
But it is equally clear that what some call a virtual coalition of blockers also exists, although driven by different motivations, which can make this initiative more difficult or less credible. An initiative that can simultaneously be seen as the potential core of the future European army that many speak of today.
Former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson used to say that a week is a very long time in politics, and from now until Thursday, many things can still happen, both in Brussels and in Washington. But as Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk pointedly and perhaps a bit self-critically noted, it is certainly thought-provoking that 500 million Europeans still ask 300 million Americans to defend them against 140 million Russians.