Peace must not mean surrendering Ukraine, Macron says alongside Trump

Bernd Debusmann Jr

at the White House, BBC News
Max Matza

BBC News

1:31
Watch: Trump and Macron cite ‘progress’ in Ukraine war peace talks

French President Emmanuel Macron said any peace deal in Ukraine must come with security guarantees, as he met US President Donald Trump at the White House for talks on the war.

“This peace must not be a surrender of Ukraine, it must not mean a ceasefire without guarantees,” he said as the two leaders held a joint news conference following their meeting on Monday.

Trump, who did not mention security guarantees himself, said the cost and burden of securing peace in Ukraine must be paid for by European nations and not just the US.

Macron responded that Europe understood the need to “more fairly share the security burden”, and added that talks on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion had shown a path forward.

While the pair exchanged warm words throughout the meeting, some clear differences emerged on the issue of ending the war in Ukraine as they spoke to reporters in the Oval Office and then held a 40-minute news conference shortly after.

The topic of including security guarantees in any peace deal was one area of difference, as was the potential next steps.

Trump said he wanted a ceasefire as soon as possible, adding that he would visit Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin once one was agreed.

Macron, however, suggested a more considered approach involving a truce and then a broader peace deal that would include clear guarantees for protecting Ukraine long-term.

“We want peace swiftly, but we don’t want an agreement that is weak,” he said.

The pair did agree, however, that any peace deal should include the deployment of European peacekeeping forces to Ukraine.

“They would not be along the front lines. They would not be part of any conflict. They would be there to ensure that the peace is respected,” Macron said in the Oval Office.

Trump then said Russian President Vladimir Putin would accept that. “I specifically asked him that question. He has no problem with it,” he said.

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Watch: Trump and Macron’s history of intense and sometimes drawn-out handshakes

The French president praised Trump’s efforts to engage with Putin in recent weeks, saying “there is good reason” for him to do so.

Trump declined to call Putin a “dictator” after using the term last week to describe Ukraine’s president, and said he planned to meet with the Russian leader after holding a call with him last week.

“I don’t know when we’ll speak,” Trump said. “At some point I’ll be meeting with President Putin.”

The meeting between Macron and Trump comes on the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky began the day with a news release marking “three years of absolute heroism of Ukrainians” before hosting an event with global representatives.

At the event in Kyiv, which was attended by many world leaders, he said “we hope that we can finish this war this year”.

Other leaders, including from the UK, Germany and Japan, spoke by video link. There was no US representation.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier addressed the recently warming relations between Moscow and Washington.

“Russia may have gained an open ear in the White House but they have not gained an inch of legitimacy,” he said.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen told attendees: “We must speed up the delivery of weapons and ammunition” to Ukraine, saying the war remains “the most central and consequential crisis for Europe’s future”.

Also on Monday, the United Nations General Assembly in New York adopted a resolution – drafted by the EU and the UK – to mark the anniversary, which reaffirms the UN’s “commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine”.

The US opposed the resolution, instead filing its own which made no reference to backing Ukraine’s territorial integrity, and refers to Russia’s invasion as a “conflict”.

The EU and UK passed a fresh round of sanctions on Russia on Monday. The EU sanctions, the 16th round passed since Russia’s invasion, targets Russia’s aluminium exports, and its so-called “shadow fleet” of ships allegedly used to bypass sanctions.

The UK sanctions target machine tools and electronics used by Russia military, and the defence minister of North Korea who is allegedly responsible for deploying over 11,000 forces to Russia to assist in the war.

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Watch: US votes against UN resolution condemning Russia aggression against Ukraine

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