(Bloomberg) -- Emmanuel Macron held talks separately with Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskiy on aligning with the US after the French president spearheaded an effort to bring Europe to the table for discussions on ending Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Macron held the phone calls after hastily convening a mini-summit Monday in Paris with several European leaders to discuss Ukraine and possible ways to boost European defense spending. This comes after EU leaders were shocked by the speed of Trump’s push to begin talks with President Vladimir Putin, with US and Russian officials due to meet in Saudi Arabia this week.
“We seek a strong and lasting peace in Ukraine,” Macron posted on his X social media account. “To achieve this, Russia must end its aggression, and this must be accompanied by strong and credible security guarantees for the Ukrainians.
“We will work on this together with all Europeans, Americans, and Ukrainians,” he added. “This is the key.”
Emmanuel Macron, France's president, right, and Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. A group of European leaders is meeting in Paris to start drawing up their response after US officials at the Munich Security Conference last week said in stark terms that there’s a limit to how much Washington is prepared to do. Photographer: Nathan Laine/Bloomberg
Emmanuel Macron, France's president, right, and Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. A group of European leaders is meeting in Paris to start drawing up their response after US officials at the Munich Security Conference last week said in stark terms that there’s a limit to how much Washington is prepared to do. Photographer: Nathan Laine/Bloomberg
Macron said he would hold further discussions and work would continue “both in supporting Ukraine and in developing and investing in our defense.” Last week at the Munich Security Conference, US officials said in stark terms there’s a limit to how much Washington is prepared to do militarily in Europe.
Zelenskiy said he discussed the state of affairs in Europe with Macron and security guarantees for his country.
“We share a common vision: security guarantees must be robust and reliable,” the Ukrainian president said. “Any other decision without such guarantees — such as a fragile ceasefire — would only serve as another deception by Russia and a prelude to a new Russian war against Ukraine or other European nations.”
Ukraine and European leaders have been trying to work their way into the process to end Russia’s full-scale assault on its neighbor that started about three years ago. With the US intent on moving at a rapid pace, Europe risks being sidelined from negotiations that could ultimately determine the security balance on the continent for years to come if it doesn’t quickly come up with a tangible plan.
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