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President Volodymyr Zelensky meeting with French, German and British leaders London On Monday, as Kiev’s European allies try to strengthen Ukraine’s hand in thorny talks over the US-backed plan to destroy Russia –ukraine war.
Prime Minister keir starmer Zelensky was supposed to gather with the President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the British leader’s 10 Downing St. residence.
Zelensky said late Sunday that his talks with European leaders in London and Brussels this week would focus on security, air defense and long-term financing for Ukraine’s war effort. Leaders are working to ensure that any ceasefire is backed by solid security guarantees from both Europe and the US to prevent a ceasefire Russia From attacking again.
US and Ukrainian negotiators wrapped up three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences over the US administration’s peace proposal.
Zelensky said in a post on Telegram that the talks had been “concrete” and that National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustam Umerov and Chief of the General Staff Andrey Hnatov were flying back to Europe to brief him.
A major sticking point in the proposal is the suggestion that Ukraine should hand over control of its eastern Donbass region to Russia, which has illegally occupied most but not all of its territory. Ukraine and its European allies do not agree with the idea of ceding land.
Speaking with reporters Sunday night, President Donald Trump appeared frustrated with Zelensky, claiming the Ukrainian leader “hasn’t read the resolution yet.”
“I believe Russia is OK with it, but I’m not sure Zelensky is OK with it,” Trump said before attending the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington. “Their people like it, but they haven’t read it.”
Trump has had a heated relationship with Zelensky since he moved into a second term in the White House and insisted that the war was a waste of American taxpayers’ money. Trump has repeatedly urged Ukrainians to cede ground to Russia in order to end the nearly four-year conflict.
The European talks follow the publication of a new US national security strategy that has alarmed European leaders and been welcomed by Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the document, which outlines the administration’s main foreign policy interests, is largely in line with Moscow’s position.
The document released by the White House on Friday said the US wants to improve its relations with Russia after years of being considered a global pariah by Moscow and that ending the war is a core US interest to “re-establish strategic stability with Russia”.
The document also says NATO should not be an “ever-expanding alliance”, echoing another Russian complaint. It was scathing about the migration and free speech policies of longtime US allies in Europe, suggesting that they face “the possibility of civilizational destruction” due to migration.
The Starmer government has declined to comment on the US document, saying it is a US government matter.
As diplomatic efforts continued, Russian forces continued attacks on Ukraine over the weekend. At least four people were killed in drone and missile attacks on Sunday, as Moscow continues to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure as winter sets in.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Monday that Russian air defenses destroyed 67 Ukrainian drones overnight. It said the drones were shot down in 11 Russian regions.
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Novikov reported from Kyiv, Ukraine.