To begin with, the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer —which in everything related to Ukraine has returned the United Kingdom to the heart of Europe after the trauma of Brexit—has organized a four-way meeting with Zelensky this Monday in London; the french president, Emmanuel Macron; and the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz.
Afterwards, the president of Ukraine traveled to Brussels for a working dinner with the secretary general of NATO, Mark Rutte; the president of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen; and the head of the European Council, Antonio Costa. Previously, a videoconference of the countries of the “coalition of volunteers” was held.
This wave of diplomatic efforts comes after the US president has once again expressed his impatience with Zelensky, whom he accuses of not having read his latest peace proposal, which contrasts with a much more understanding attitude towards Vladimir Putin.
“I am a little disappointed that President Zelensky has not yet read the proposal (…) His people love it, but he doesn’t. Russia is fine with it. I suppose Russia would prefer to keep the whole country, don’t you think? But, well, I think Russia is fine with it, although I’m not sure Zelensky is fine with it,” Trump said this Sunday.
His controversial new National Security Strategy maintains that “It is a fundamental US interest to negotiate a quick cessation of hostilities in Ukrainein order to stabilize European economies, prevent an unwanted escalation or expansion of war and restore strategic stability with Russia.”
“The Trump administration is in conflict with European officials who have unrealistic expectations about warsupported by unstable minority governments, many of which trample the basic principles of democracy to repress the opposition. “A vast majority of Europeans want peace, but that desire is not translated into policies, largely due to the subversion of democratic processes by these governments,” the text says.
European leaders have already moved to rewrite the 28-point peace plan that Washington circulated in late November, and which in Brussels was interpreted as a attempt to force Ukraine’s total surrendersince it forced him to cede the entire Donbas region to Russia and limit the size of his Army.
The latest version of the plan – whose content is not known – is less harmful for kyiv, according to diplomatic sources. However, some central issues (such as those related to territorial transfers) remain open.
“I am skeptical about some of the details that appear in certain US documentsbut we have to talk about it,” Merz admitted in London.
“We are – and continue to be – firmly on the side of Ukraine, supporting its country. Because we all know that the destiny of this country is the destiny of Europe“, the German Chancellor told Zelensky in a joint statement to the press.
“Ukraine must decide on Ukrainian affairs. We are here to support you in the conflict and to support you in the negotiations,” Starmer agreed.
In a zasca directed against Trump, who has said several times that kyiv has no card to win the war, Macron has stated that “we have many cards in our hands.”
The French president has asserted that “Ukraine continues to resist in this war”, while “the Russian economy is starting to suffer“The priority now is to achieve “convergence” between the position of the EU and Ukraine on the one hand and that of Trump on the other, he acknowledges.
Zelensky has also called for “unity” between the EU and Ukraine and the United States and has announced that the Europeans could have finalized this Tuesday their own definitive version of the peace plan to negotiate with Washington.
“There are things we cannot manage without the Americansthings that we cannot manage without Europe, and that is why we need to make important decisions,” said the president of Ukraine in a confession of the difficult balances that he has to face.
For their part, the heads of State and Government of the Nordic and Baltic countries sent a joint letter to Von der Leyen and Costa this Monday in which they support sending the frozen Russian funds to Ukraine.
“Taking into account the current scale and urgency of Ukraine’s budgetary and military needs, we strongly support the Commission’s proposal for a ‘reparations loan’ financed from the cash balances of Russian assets tied up in the EU,” the letter says.
“In addition to being the most financially viable and politically realistic solutionaddresses the fundamental principle of Ukraine’s right to receive compensation for damage caused by aggression,” say the leaders of Poland, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Ireland.
With this ‘reparations loan’, the EU has “the opportunity to put Ukraine in a stronger position to defend itself and in a better position to negotiate a just and lasting peace.” “Time is of the essence,” concludes the joint letter, which calls for a decision to be adopted at the summit on December 18.
President Von der Leyen has also defended sending frozen Russian assets to Ukraine. “We all know what is at stake and we know we have no more time to waste. Securing financial support will help ensure the survival of Ukraine and constitutes a crucial act of European defense“he alleged.
“As Ukraine engages in genuine diplomatic efforts for peace, Russia deceives and buys time repeatedlymocking diplomacy and increasing attacks while pretending to seek peace. Today that facade remains firmly standing. But we will not fall into the trap: we know who is the aggressor and who is the victim in this war,” says the German.
“Giving Ukraine the resources it needs to defend itself does not prolong the war; it can help end it,” maintains the head of community diplomacy, Kaja Kallas.
However, Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever continues to veto the use of Russian assets – which are in the financial services company Euroclearbased in Brussels – for fear that Russia will concentrate all retaliation in its country.
De Wever had a working dinner last Friday with President Von der Leyen and Chancellor Merz, from which no agreement emerged to unblock the ‘reparations loan’ to Ukraine. The EU’s actions to support kyiv continue to fall short of its promises.