European leaders are set to hold an emergency working meeting in Paris on Monday to align their position after the Trump administration said Europe would be excluded from talks with Russia to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine.
The meeting between several key European leaders aims to address “the situation in Ukraine and security issues in Europe” by “bringing together all the partners interested in peace and security” in the region, French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said in a statement Sunday.
The talks come a day before U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is due to meet with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia that exclude Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is currently in the neighboring United Arab Emirates on a scheduled trip to boost humanitarian support for Ukraine, officials said.
On Sunday, Zelenskyy told NBC’s Kristen Welker that he would “never accept any decisions between the United States and Russia about Ukraine,” adding, “there is no any leader in the world who can really make a deal with Putin without us about us.”
Concerns have risen among European leaders that Trump is forging ahead with a peace deal with Putin that could undermine Kyiv and broader European security after Trump’s envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, suggested during the Munich Security Conference that Europe would not have a seat at the table for the peace talks.
The Elysée Palace, the residence of President Macron, said leaders of several European Union countries would attend the meeting, along with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the Presidents of the European Council and European Commission, and the Secretary-General of NATO. It added that proceedings would get underway at 3:45 p.m. local time (9:45 a.m. ET).
As for what might be on the agenda, Finnish President Alexander Stubb suggested Sunday as the Munich Security Conference wrapped up that European nations work together to appoint a special envoy to represent their interests in broader negotiations with the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine.
Talks may also focus on what security guarantees for Ukraine its European allies can ensure.
France’s Minister of Foreign Affairs indicated Sunday that discussions were underway on the deployment of French, British, and Polish troops — the countries possess three of Europe’s biggest armies — to guarantee a future ceasefire in Ukraine.
On Monday, Starmer became the first European leader to confirm his country’s commitment to deploying peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, saying so in writing in the U.K.’s Daily Telegraph newspaper.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson also said his country would consider contributing to peacekeeping if negotiations progress, according to Reuters.
But Rubio, America’s chief diplomat, sought to downplay Europe’s concerns about being sidelined in talks about security in its backyard, saying in an interview with CBS on Sunday that Ukraine and Europe would be part of any “real negotiations.”
After Trump’s phone call with Putin last week, the President assured Zelenskyy that he also would have a seat at the table.
While Kyiv has received no invitation to Tuesday’s kick-off talks in Riyadh, Zelenskyy said Monday that he plans to visit Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and that he expects more clarity on the date of a meeting with President Trump after Kellogg visits Ukraine later this week.