Ukraine calls on Europe to appoint a peace envoy urgently
Ukraine is urging Europe to appoint its own envoy for peace talks, Bloomberg reports. "It should be a quickly made decision," said Ihor Zhovkva, Deputy Chief of Staff for Ukraine's President, to Bloomberg.
Bloomberg states that Ihor Zhovkva emphasized that the European envoy should have a leadership position to ensure they have the same status as Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, U.S. President Donald Trump, or Russia's President Vladimir Putin.
Informal summit on ukraine
On Monday an informal meeting of European leaders focused on security and the situation in Ukraine will take place in Paris. The meeting was convened by France's President Emmanuel Macron. Prime Minister Donald Tusk has already arrived in the French capital.
The talks in Paris will also include heads of government: Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom, Olaf Scholz of Germany, Giorgia Meloni of Italy, Pedro Sanchez of Spain, Dick Schoof of the Netherlands, and Mette Frederiksen, who will represent the Baltic and Scandinavian countries.
The meeting will also be attended by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and European Council President Antonio Costa.
President of France Emmanuel Macron spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump before the informal meeting of European leaders in Paris concerning Ukraine, Reuters reported.
This meeting is connected to the events of the Munich Security Conference, where U.S. officials stated that they do not see a role for Europe in the negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
Will Europe not be able to rely on the USA?
Europeans are entering a time when they will not be able to rely on the USA, assessed the "New York Times" in its Monday article. Sunday marked the end of the Munich Security Conference, which, according to the "NYT," highlighted a deep crisis in relations between Europe and the USA.
Vice President J. D. Vance, who represented the USA in Munich, emphasized in his speech that Europe cannot count on unwavering support from Washington. Additionally, the U.S. envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellog, also present in Munich, stressed that the Trump administration does not want European leaders to participate directly in negotiations with Russia.
In light of discussions between the President of the United States and Putin, which occurred without consulting U.S. allies, there is concern in European capitals about becoming a pawn in Washington's negotiations with Moscow to end Russia's war against Ukraine.
