Keir Starmer will host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in London on Monday as the UK prime minister and other key European leaders seek to steer US-led peace talks toward a resolution that protects Ukraine from the prospect of future Russian aggression.
French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will join in the early-afternoon discussions in Downing Street. UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, meanwhile, will head to Washington for the first time in her present role to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other officials.
The discussions on both sides of the Atlantic coincide with European fears that the transatlantic alliance is fracturing after the US last month proposed a 28-point peace plan drafted with Russia that would have barred Ukraine from joining NATO, capped the size of its military and ceded territory to Moscow.
While discussions have since accommodated for Ukrainian demands, European leaders are keen to ensure Russian President Vladimir Putin isn’t seen to be rewarded for his aggression.
“The principle behind the talks will be for Ukraine to be able to decide its own future,” UK cabinet minister Pat McFadden told Sky News on Sunday. “This is a really pivotal moment. Everybody wants the war to come to an end, but they want it to come to an end in a way that gives Ukraine that freedom of choice in the future. That means a just end to the war, but also security guarantees for Ukraine in the future and not a completely toothless organization which is unable to decide its future.”
At the weekend, Russia conducted a massive attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure involving hundreds of drones and more than 50 missiles that took out power in Kyiv, Odesa and five other regions. Ukraine said it hit Rosneft PJSC’s Ryazan oil refinery 120 miles southeast of Moscow.
Ukraine’s European supporters have been hoping that if they can support Kyiv through the winter, Russia’s economic struggles will intensify next year, and Putin will lose his negotiating leverage.
With US aid drying up, European leaders have been working on a plan to use Russian central bank assets frozen in Belgium to fund Ukraine. Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has resisted the idea, arguing Belgium could be on the hook if Russia sues in response.
About €210 billion in Russian assets are immobilized on EU soil, mostly in the Brussels-based securities depository Euroclear. EU leaders aim to reach a consensus on the proposal at a meeting in the Belgian capital on Dec. 18.
Starmer on Sunday spoke with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, agreeing on “the need for sustained international support for Ukraine’s defense,” 10 Downing Street said in a readout of the phone call. “The leaders reiterated that Ukraine’s security is vital for Europe’s security,” it said.
Starmer has sought to position himself as the European leader closest to US President Donald Trump, as well as Ukraine’s leading ally. That’s a tricky proposition given the longstanding friction between the US and Ukrainian leaders that manifested itself in a shouting match in the Oval Office in February.
In Washington, Cooper will convey Britain’s support for Trump’s “efforts to secure a just and lasting peace,” according to a statement from the Foreign Office. She’ll also discuss the situation in Gaza and the conflict in Sudan with Rubio, it said.
With assistance from Richard Bravo and Alex Wickham.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
