Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Keir Starmer leave the residence of the British Prime Minister in London / Associated Press
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced plans to revive peace talks in Ukraine by mediating between Kyiv, Washington and Europe. According to Reuters, Starmer is hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and key Western leaders in London on Sunday in an effort to smooth the waters after a high-profile spat between Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump at the White House.
Europe prepares a plan for the US
After phone calls with Trump, Zelenskyy and Macron, Starmer said it was time to create a “coalition of the willing” in Europe that would quickly develop a real peace plan to present to the United States.
“We can no longer move at the pace of each individual country. We need a unified initiative. The UK and France are already working on this,” Starmer said.
He stressed that he does not consider Zelenskyy to be to blame for the conflict with Trump, but Europe needs to act quickly, demonstrating its ability to protect Ukraine and its own strategic interests.
Leaders’ Summit: supporting peace and Ukraine
On Sunday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, leaders of Germany, Poland, Denmark, Canada, and a representative of Turkey join the talks in London.
The summit is expected to discuss:
– further military assistance to Ukraine;
– security guarantees for Kyiv;
– prospects for peace talks with the US.
US plans and Europe’s position
Starmer hopes to persuade Trump to support a potential European peacekeeping force and provide guarantees for Ukraine, from air cover to intelligence and deterrence of future Russian attacks.
At the same time, many European leaders, including Rutte and Polish President Andrzej Duda, are calling on Zelenskyy to resume dialogue with Trump in order to maintain Washington’s strategic support.
“We don’t know what position Trump will take in three or six months,” said Niels Schmid, a representative of the German Social Democrats.
Starmer aims to use the London summit to restore Europe’s leadership role in the peace process and prevent a further split between Kyiv and the US after the Oval Office diplomatic scandal.
Decisive negotiations are ahead to determine whether Europe, together with the United States, can create a plan for real peace for Ukraine and prevent a new round of Russian aggression.
