Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Monday for “real, lasting peace” this year as European leaders gathered for a summit in Kyiv on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion. Russia said it would halt the invasion only if a deal could be reached that “suits” its interests, and accused Europe of wanting to prolong the fighting.
Russian President Putin’s decision to launch the invasion in Feb 2022 set off the biggest conflict in Europe since WWII. Tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides and Ukrainian civilians have been killed.
“This year should be the year of the beginning of a real, lasting peace,” Zelensky told Ukraine’s backers in Kyiv. “We have to win peace through strength and wisdom and unity,” he said, vowing at a press conference later on Monday that Russia “will not win”.
EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen also warned that despite opening talks with the US on how to end the conflict, Putin was not about to back down. “Putin is trying harder than ever to win this war on the ground. His goal remains Ukraine’s capitulation.”
But as leaders of Ukraine’s backers lined up to proclaim support and hail Kyiv’s resistance, there was one notable absence: the US. Donald Trump’s return to the White House has threatened broad Western support for Ukraine as well as vital military and financial aid at a critical juncture.
Speaking in Washington, Trump said Putin would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine as part of a potential deal to end Russia’s war there. Trump made the comments to reporters at a start of a meeting with French President Macron. “Yeah, he will accept it,” Trump said. “I have asked him that question. Look, if we do this deal, he’s not looking for World War.” Trump also said he was hopeful the US and Ukraine will soon come to terms on a rare earth minerals deal. “It looks like we’re getting very close,” he said, adding that Zelensky could potentially visit Washington this week or next to sign the deal.