The United Kingdom has said there are several proposals for a potential Ukraine ceasefire after French President Emmanuel Macron proposed a limited initial one-month truce, as Kyiv reiterated its need for security guarantees as part of any agreement.
European countries, led by the UK and France, are looking at options for a proposal to halt Russia’s war on Ukraine after last week’s Oval Office rupture between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosted a summit of European leaders in London on Sunday and said they had agreed to draw up a Ukraine peace plan to present to the US.
In an interview given on his way to the summit, Macron raised the possibility of a one-month ceasefire, although so far there has been no public endorsement from other allies.
“Such a truce on air, sea and energy infrastructure would allow us to determine whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is acting in good faith when he commits to a truce,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said of Macron’s proposal.
Advertisement
“And that’s when real peace negotiations could start.”
Starmer’s spokesperson on Monday said there are “clearly a number of options” on the table.
“I’m just not getting into a running commentary on the options,” he added.
UK Defence Minister Luke Pollard told Times Radio that no agreement has been made on “what a truce looks like”.
“But we are working with France and European allies for a lasting peace,” Pollard said.
Asked if he was aware of the plan raised by Macron, Zelenskyy said: “I’m aware of everything.”
In comments on Monday, Zelenskyy accused Russia of not being serious about peace and said tough security guarantees were the only way to end more than three years of conflict in Ukraine.
He called for “effective security guarantees that will make it impossible for Russian aggression to return” after predicting that Moscow would break any deal.
“Anyone who wants to negotiate does not deliberately hit people with ballistic missiles,” he said in his statement.
Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022, dismissed the Ukraine leader’s comments, accusing him of not wanting peace, echoing US criticisms after Zelenskyy was shouted down in the White House last week.
“What happened at the White House on Friday, of course, demonstrated how difficult it will be to reach a settlement trajectory around Ukraine,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
“The Kyiv regime and Zelenskyy do not want peace. They want the war to continue. It is very important that someone forces Zelenskyy himself to change his position. Someone has to make Zelenskyy want peace. If the Europeans can do it, they should be honoured and praised.”
Advertisement
European countries are adjusting to what some leaders describe as the biggest policy reversal since World War II from Washington – especially after Friday’s bust-up, when Zelenskyy left the White House abruptly after a dressing down in front of cameras by Trump and US Vice President JD Vance.
The Ukrainian leader had been in Washington to sign a deal to give the United States access to Ukrainian minerals, but left without signing it.
Speaking to Fox News, US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said Zelenskyy should apologise.
“What we need to hear from President Zelenskiy is that he has regret for what happened, he’s ready to sign this minerals deal and that he’s ready to engage in peace talks,” Waltz said.
“I don’t think that’s too much to ask. We’ll see what happens in the next 48 hours, but we are certainly looking to move forward in a positive way.”
European leaders have agreed they must spend more on defence to show Trump the continent can protect itself. The European Union is due to hold an emergency summit on Thursday.
Reporting from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford said that Ukrainians are bracing for uncertain times ahead.
“They would have been buoyed by the level of support expressed by European leaders in London yesterday, but they are also aware there are a whole lot of hurdles yet that need to be overcome before we see anything real and concrete in terms of stopping the fighting in Ukraine,” Stratford said.
“It’s all key on whether the US will agree to security guarantees both around this plan that Europe has and with respect to the minerals deal as well,” he added.
Advertisement
