British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday European leaders had agreed to draw up a Ukraine peace plan to present to the United States, a vital step for Washington to be able to offer security guarantees that Kyiv says are essential to deter Russia.
At a summit in London just two days after Volodymyr Zelenskiy clashed with U.S. President Donald Trump and cut short a visit to Washington, European leaders offered a strong show of support to the Ukrainian president and promised to do more to help his nation.
European leaders agreed they must spend more on defence to show Trump the continent can protect itself, and the European Commission chief suggested the bloc could ease rules that limit debt levels.
Starmer, who welcomed a visibly shaken Zelenskiy on Saturday with a warm hug, said Britain, Ukraine, France and some other nations would form a “coalition of the willing” and draw up a peace plan to take to Trump.
“This is not a moment for more talk. It’s time to act. Time to step up and lead and to unite around a new plan for a just and enduring peace,” Starmer said.
Leaders did not provide details of their plan. Before the summit, French President Emmanuel Macron told newspaper Le Figaro that the plan would involve a one-month ceasefire that would apply to air and sea attacks but not to ground combat.
European troops would be deployed if a more substantial peace agreement was reached, he said. It was not clear whether other nations had agreed to the terms.
Zelenskiy said after the meeting that he left London with “Europe’s clear support” and readiness to cooperate.
“There will be diplomacy for the sake of peace,” he said in his nightly video address. “And for the sake of us all being together – Ukraine, all of Europe and definitely, definitely America.”
Earlier, Zelenskiy told reporters that Ukraine would not cede any territory to Russia as part of a peace agreement and said he was still willing to sign a minerals deal with the United States.
Zelenskiy said he believed he could salvage his relationship with Trump after Friday’s shouting match, but that talks would have to take place behind closed doors.
“The format of what happened, I don’t think it brought something positive or additional to us as partners,” he said.
Europe is scrambling to ensure that Kyiv is not squeezed out of any talks after the Oval Office clash raised fears that the U.S. could pull support for Ukraine and impose a peace plan negotiated with Russia.
Several European leaders said they must increase defence spending – something that could help bring Trump on side to offer a U.S. security guarantee in the event of peace.
“After a long time of underinvestment, it is now of utmost importance to step up the defence investment for a prolonged period of time,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, told reporters.
Europe needs to turn “Ukraine into a steel porcupine that is indigestible for potential invaders,” she said.
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Europe, which lacks the weaponry and depth of ammunition stocks of the U.S., hopes to convince Trump that it can defend itself but that Russia will only adhere to a peace deal if it comes with the backing of the United States.
Talks with the U.S. have centred on Washington providing a so-called backstop for a European peacekeeping role, possibly in the form of air cover, intelligence and surveillance and a greater but unspecified threat if Russian President Vladimir Putin again sought to take more territory.
Crucial to getting any agreement from Trump is for European nations to increase defence spending and signal they would take part in any peacekeeping role – something Starmer acknowledged was difficult to get unanimity on.
Starmer increased the UK’s defence spending before his visit to Washington last week, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said some European leaders had privately set out new plans on defence spending at the meeting but he declined to give details.
