UK's Starmer tries to revive hope for Ukraine peace at summit
· CNA · JoinRead a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
LONDON: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will try to revive hope for peace in Ukraine at a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other Western leaders on Sunday (Mar 2), two days after the Ukrainian president clashed with US President Donald Trump.
After the heated row with Trump, who threatened to stop support for Ukraine after accusing Zelenskyy of being ungrateful for US aid, the Ukrainian leader flew from Washington to London on Saturday to be greeted with a warm hug from Starmer.
The British leader said on Sunday an urgent round of calls to Trump, Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron over the weekend had cemented the idea that a "coalition of the willing" in Europe would need to move quickly to come up with a peace plan to be presented to the United States.
That meant Europe moving faster than it has done to show it can defend itself, Starmer said, adding he was not criticising other nations but making it clear that countries needed to step up as Britain and France had by offering peacekeeping troops.
"Rather than moving at the pace of every single country in Europe, which would in the end be quite a slow process, we've got to probably get to a coalition of the willing now," he told the BBC.
"The UK and France are the most advanced on the thinking of this and that is why President Macron and I are working on this plan, which we will then discuss with the US," he said, adding he did not think Zelenskyy had done anything wrong on Friday.
Trump has upended US policy on the three-year-old war since he returned to the White House in January, casting doubt on its military and political support for Ukraine – and Europe – and ending the isolation of Moscow.
UNCOMFORTABLE VIEWING
Starmer described watching the spat between Zelenskyy and Trump in the Oval Office as uncomfortable viewing, but was keen to push the conversation forward by offering himself as a go-between for Europe and the United States.
In contrast Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised Trump's "common sense" approach and accused European countries of seeking to prolong the conflict by propping up Zelenskyy "with their bayonets in the form of peacekeeping units".
Lacking the weaponry and depth of ammunition stocks of the United States, European leaders have so far offered expressions of support after the Zelenskyy row, with Germany calling for the release of €3 billion (US$3.1 billion) for Ukraine.
Starmer will ask leaders on Sunday what more they can provide in aid. After he announced an increase to Britain's defence budget, he will commit to providing further capacity, training and support to Kyiv.
European leaders reacted to the extraordinary bust-up in the White House by expressing support for Ukraine, risking a major rift with their traditional US ally, but some leaders are also likely to encourage Zelenskyy to return to talks with Trump.
NATO's Rutte and Polish President Andrzej Duda have urged the Ukrainian leader to find a way to restore the relationship.
At meetings that have taken on added significance, Starmer held talks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni after he welcomed Zelenskyy on Saturday with a clear message of support for a visibly shaken leader.
They will then be joined by Macron, the EU's Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and leaders from countries including Germany, Denmark, Poland and Canada. Turkey's foreign minister will also attend.
BAD END TO GOOD WEEK
Zelenskyy's row with Trump on Friday ended a week when Europe had appeared to be in a better position in its drive to encourage Trump to continue to offer support to Ukraine after cordial visits to Washington by Macron and Starmer.
Both had pressed the US leader to offer what is known as "a backstop" to a potential European peacekeeping force in the event of a deal between Kyiv and Moscow. While they had failed to secure a promise from Trump, he had not rejected the idea.
But the rest of Europe is a long way from falling in behind the French and British leaders' plans to safeguard a peace deal, and Starmer will hope to take on a leadership role by suggesting Britain become a bridge between Europe and the United States.
Sunday's meeting is a boost for Starmer, whose team felt his meeting with Trump last week had gone better than expected with Trump praising the British leader and even suggesting Ukraine could regain some lost territory in peace talks.
Friday's disastrous meeting poisoned that mood, and Sunday's summit and an extraordinary EU one in Brussels this week will prove crucial to establishing whether European leaders can offer Ukraine something concrete and repair the damage done.
On Sunday, European leaders are expected again to press for peace talks to include Ukraine, to strengthen Kyiv's position and to secure the necessary security guarantees to ensure a long-lasting peace and to deter any future Russian attack.
That would require a US backstop, possibly in the form of air cover, intelligence and surveillance and a greater as yet unspecified threat if Russian President Vladimir Putin again sought to take more territory.
Starmer and Macron will update other leaders on their meetings with Trump in Washington last week, and they will seek to lower the temperature after the row in Trump's Oval Office.
Nils Schmid, foreign policy spokesperson for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats, told Reuters on Saturday that Europe needed to maintain its contacts with Trump.
"Generally speaking, we don't know where Trump will stand on all these issues in three or six months' time," he said.
On Sunday, European leaders are expected again to press for peace talks to include Ukraine, to strengthen Kyiv's position and to secure the necessary security guarantees to ensure a long-lasting peace and to deter any future Russian attack.
That would mean persuading Washington to offer a backstop, possibly in the form of air cover, intelligence and surveillance and a greater as yet unspecified threat if Putin again sought to take more territory.
Starmer will update other leaders on his meeting with Trump, when the US president praised his efforts to increase defence spending and offer to deploy peacekeeping troops.
For now, Starmer wants to lower the temperature after the row in Trump's Oval Office.
Some leaders will also urge Zelenskyy to try to rebuild bridges with Trump. NATO's Rutte and Polish President Andrzej Duda have urged the Ukrainian leader to find a way to restore the relationship.
Nils Schmid, foreign policy spokesperson for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats, told Reuters on Saturday that Europe needed to maintain its contacts with Trump.
"Generally speaking, we don't know where Trump will stand on all these issues in three or six months' time," he said.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app