European leaders, including Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron, are thinking about joining Volodymyr Zelensky on his trip to Washington to help fix his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump.
This plan, first reported by The Telegraph, comes after a tense meeting in the Oval Office, where Trump and Zelensky had a disagreement, causing the U.S. to pause its military aid to Ukraine. Now, Ukraine’s European allies are working together on a plan to restore support.
A spokesperson for the French president, Macron, confirmed that they were considering the trip, saying, “We are looking into the possibility of President Macron traveling to Washington with President Zelensky and the British leader.” However, Macron’s office later said there were no confirmed plans, and No. 10 Downing Street also denied that talks were underway.
Mike Waltz, Trump’s national security adviser, said that military aid could be restored if peace talks are arranged and there are steps to build trust between both sides.
According to sources, Trump now wants Zelensky to offer more than just a deal on Ukraine’s minerals to move peace talks forward. The White House said they are discussing a new round of talks, and if successful, they might resume military support for Ukraine.
Zelensky tweeted on Tuesday that he is open to restarting talks with Trump, suggesting that the first steps might include releasing prisoners and stopping long-range missile attacks.
Meanwhile, European leaders like Macron and Starmer are coming up with proposals to help Ukraine after the war ends and to ensure Ukraine’s security. They plan to present these ideas to Trump in hopes of getting his support back.
Zelensky said that Ukraine is “ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible” to ease tensions with Washington. His European allies advised him to sign the minerals deal proposed by Trump, which Zelensky has agreed to do “at any time and in any convenient format.”
However, they also warned that signing the deal alone might not be enough to convince Trump to restart military aid. “Kyiv will have to offer more than just signing the deal,” said a European diplomat. “The White House now wants to talk about peace terms.”
Trump has said that Zelensky needs to do more than just say he supports peace. Waltz mentioned that Kyiv might have to give up some territory to Russia as part of a peace deal.
Zelensky has been cautious about agreeing to strategies proposed by the Trump administration to end the war because they didn’t guarantee Ukraine’s security. But in his message to Trump, he showed he’s open to a partial, month-long ceasefire, something he had previously rejected.
Sources in Kyiv are hopeful that the U.S. will eventually resume military aid, but they are unsure if the current plan will lead to quick results.
On Thursday, European leaders will meet in Brussels to discuss Ukraine and overall security in the EU. The EU has agreed to boost defense spending as part of a broader plan to ease Trump’s concerns.
EU leaders will also talk about security guarantees for Ukraine after the war, including the possibility of sending troops to prevent future Russian attacks. The main focus, however, is strengthening Ukraine’s military so it can defend itself from any future invasions.
Von der Leyen has called this plan the “steel porcupine,” describing it as making Ukraine so strong that it would be too difficult for any invader to succeed. “This is the strategy shared by most EU countries,” said a senior EU official.
The official added that it is still too early to talk about sending troops to Ukraine because there is no ceasefire or peace deal yet. “We don’t even have negotiations for a ceasefire, so it’s too soon to discuss details,” the source said.
Hungary and Slovakia, which are close to Russia, are holding up EU plans to send more military aid to Ukraine. EU ambassadors in Brussels have not yet agreed on a final draft of the plan, with some points still left for leaders to decide on Thursday.
