If Russian President Vladimir Putin does not commit to meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky by Monday, it means that he has deceived US President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron said, quoted by Reuters, BTA reports.
“If this does not happen by Monday, the deadline set by President Trump, it means that once again President Putin has played President Trump“, Macron said at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Trump threatened consequences if the Russian and Ukrainian leaders did not meet.
Zelensky also recalled a statement by Trump that he would gave Putin a week or two to agree to a bilateral meeting with the Ukrainian president before possibly announcing new actions against Russia.
„Two weeks will be up on Monday. "And we will remind everyone of that," Zelensky said.
The leaders of about 30 countries that have pledged to provide security support to Ukraine after a future peace deal with Russia will meet next week to discuss proposals put forward by their military chiefs, French President Emmanuel Macron said, quoted by Reuters.
The so-called coalition of the willing, set up by France and Britain in February this year, has been holding talks for months at various levels to try to outline plans for what they could contribute militarily to Ukraine to deter Russia from attacking again once a final peace deal is reached.
Those efforts have stalled in recent months as governments have said any European military role in or around Ukraine would need security guarantees from the United States as a backstop, but there has been little sign that the Trump administration will provided.
Following a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in mid-August and a subsequent meeting between Trump and European leaders, the US president for the first time hinted at some US military involvement, including air support, as long as Europe takes up the planning.
“Our chiefs of staff have done very important work since the meeting in Washington and in the last few hours have again allowed us to define the contribution of each country“, French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters in Toulon, at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
A new meeting, which some leaders will attend in person and others online, will be held to discuss “the work of our chiefs of staff over the last few days and to take stock next week after the deadline“, Macron said.
The coalition is made up mainly of countries from The European Union, but also includes Turkey, Canada and Australia.
Macron did not specify when or where the meeting would take place. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will also attend.
The French army chief said military commanders had positive and in-depth talks and were now forwarding detailed proposals to a political level.
Macron said the contribution from the coalition of willing countries would focus on strengthening the Ukrainian army, to see who would be trained, financed and equipped and how.
The creation of a “support force” would also be considered, outlining which countries would be prepared to send contingents and what type of troops - land, sea or air.
The latter element involves the deployment of auxiliary forces in countries neighboring Ukraine.