The News
French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe was prepared to send peacekeepers to Ukraine ahead of a meeting with US President Donald Trump Monday, stressing that Europe is ready to “step up” on defense and security.
Trump, meanwhile, told Macron that the war in Ukraine could end “within weeks,” and insisted that Russian leader Vladimir Putin “will accept” European troops in Ukraine, something Moscow previously ruled out.
At a joint press conference after the meeting, Trump said he is making a “decisive break” with past US foreign policy, which he called “very foolish.”
Macron said the two leaders’ talk was “extremely constructive.”
“I fully believe there is a path forward,” he added, emphasizing the need to guarantee Ukraine and European security as part of any deal. In remarks broadcast on Russian state media, Putin said he was open to Europe being involved in a peace deal, but it is unclear what European input Moscow would be willing to allow in practice.
SIGNALS
Europe prepares ‘reassurance force’ of up to 30,000 troops
France and the UK are developing plans for a possible European “reassurance force” to deploy to Ukraine after a peace is negotiated that could include as many as 30,000 soldiers. The troops would not be sent to whatever frontline there may be with Russia, and instead be stationed close to critical Ukrainian infrastructure, as well as cities and ports. The UK has stressed that the plan requires the US to act as a “backstop,” which could include deploying American air-defense systems to neighboring countries and keeping the US air force on alert in case the European troops were threatened, The Wall Street Journal reported. A Russian official said the idea of European peacekeepers in Ukraine was a “step towards escalation.”
Is France able to lead Europe?
French President Emmanuel Macron has positioned himself as the Europe Union’s voice against Donald Trump’s outreach to Russia, convening the bloc’s leaders and leading the outreach to Washington. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is due to follow later this week, but “Macron wanted to be the first and only one in the photo [with Trump],” a source told Le Monde. Macron may be uniquely positioned to represent Europe in talks with Washington, a former French ambassador argued, as he established close ties with Trump during his first term without descending into quarrels. Still, France’s tight domestic budget and political turmoil has limited what it can spend on the continent’s defense and aid for Ukraine.
US sides with Russia on Ukraine vote at the UN
Also on Monday, the US voted against a United Nations resolution condemning Russian aggression in Ukraine, breaking with Washington’s European allies to side with Moscow. The vote was “the biggest split among Western powers at the UN since the Iraq War — and probably even more fundamental,” one UN expert told The Washington Post. The US had argued that previous UN resolutions condemning Russia “have failed to stop the war,” stressing that the organization should instead focus on ending the war as fast as it can. The vote, while largely symbolic, further inflamed tensions between the new Trump administration and Washington’s closest allies since the Second World War.