Britain and France are preparing a peace plan for Ukraine

^{Photo: Getty Images}
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated that before the summit of European countries regarding the situation in Ukraine begins, Britain and France will work on a "plan to halt military actions" with Ukraine, and then discuss it with the United States.

The London summit, attended by leaders of Europe's largest countries, is taking place two days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's public scandal with Donald Trump at the White House.

European leaders are expected to continue supporting Ukraine and discuss steps to halt the war amid threats from the US to stop military aid to Kyiv and the sharp cooling of relations between Kyiv and Washington.

^{France and Britain have expressed their readiness to send peacekeeping forces to Ukraine, but they are asking for help from the US - Russia is firmly opposed to this plan.}
In an interview with the BBC, Starmer said that his "main goal" now is to be a "bridge" between Zelensky and Trump.

The Prime Minister stated that shortly after the conflict in the Oval Office, he called both the US president and the Ukrainian president. "My reaction was: we need to build bridges, we need to find a way to work together. Because whatever happens, we have gone through three years of bloody conflict, and now we need to achieve a solid peace," Starmer said.

Starmer outlined three key conditions necessary for ensuring peace in Ukraine - a strong position from Kyiv, security guarantees from Europe, and support from America. "There must not be a deal that could be destroyed, and this is exactly what worries Zelensky," he added.

Starmer stated that he does not believe Zelensky "did anything wrong at the White House." However, he believes that the US president genuinely wants to achieve a solid peace in Ukraine. When asked directly if he trusts the current US president, he answered "yes."

He also mentioned that it is possible to trust Zelensky, but it is impossible to trust Russian President Vladimir Putin, and that is why the US must provide security guarantees for any peace agreement.

The main obstacle in negotiations between the US and Ukraine has also been the security guarantees demanded by Zelensky.

Trump is currently refusing to set clear measures to restrain Russia if it breaks the agreement to stop firing.

The American president emphasizes that if Ukraine agrees to sign an agreement with the US for the joint development of natural resources, this would bring American companies into Ukrainian territory - thus, the Kremlin would not dare to break the contract. Kyiv and other Western countries do not believe such arguments.

"I am in favor of there being an agreement, that military actions must be halted, and then this agreement must be protected, because the worst scenario of all possible is a temporary pause, and then Putin returns," Starmer told the BBC.

Russia against the "volunteers coalition"

One of the main topics of the London summit is expected to be the issue of sending European peacekeeping forces to Ukraine. According to Starmer, if a peace agreement is signed, Britain and France will form a "volunteers coalition" to provide security guarantees to Ukraine. Both countries are also ready to send peacekeeping forces to Ukraine on the condition that security guarantees are provided by the US.

After Zelensky's negotiations with Trump failed, European countries are ready to take the initiative into their own hands, the British Prime Minister said in an interview with the BBC on Sunday morning.

"Britain, as well as France and possibly one or two other countries, will work on a plan to halt military actions together with Ukraine, and then we will discuss this plan with the United States," Starmer said.

^{Starmer initially met with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni}
At the same time, the Prime Minister stated that European security guarantees should be provided by the "volunteers coalition."

Russia continues to strongly oppose sending European troops to Ukraine - this was reiterated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Sunday morning.

According to him, the presence of European peacekeeping forces in Ukraine means that the "root causes of the crisis" will not disappear for Russia.

Lavrov stated that for Russia, the discussion of European peacekeeping forces for Ukraine is "a sham, continuing to 'train' Kyiv for war against Russia."

"The Westerners cannot explain what will happen if the territory of Ukraine and the Russian language are controlled by European peacekeeping forces," he said (all quotes are from the TASS agency).

Who attended the summit?

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are participating in the summit.

^{Ursula von der Leyen and Keir Starmer before the summit. Photo: EPA}
Leaders from Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Finland, Sweden, the Czech Republic, and Romania, as well as Turkey's foreign minister, have also attended the meeting.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that Ukraine can expect his country's support without any additional conditions before heading to the summit in London.

Tusk mentioned a "certain dilemma" that the US position on Ukraine is "not as clear as ours." "But we must overcome this dilemma," he added, emphasizing that Poland currently has "excellent relations with the US" and will "strengthen" them in the future.

At the same time, Tusk stated that Poland is "on Ukraine's side without any 'buts'."

He also noted that during the summit, he would propose increasing the number of European troops in the eastern flank of the European Union - Finland, the Baltic states, and Poland.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and European Council President Antonio Costa have also been invited to the summit.

"I am going to London to emphasize Europe's continuous support for Ukraine, which can lead to a just and solid peace in Ukraine," said Ursula von der Leyen in a message on her social media. "The path to peace is strength. Weakness leads to an even greater war. We support Ukraine while strengthening European defense."

In the first half of the day, Starmer received Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at Downing Street before heading to the summit.

Observers note that Meloni is in a delicate situation. She is close to the Trump administration, and the US president has expressed his gratitude to her several times.

After the disagreement with Trump, she did not join other EU leaders who supported Zelensky on social media. However, since coming to power in 2022, Meloni has consistently supported Ukraine in its struggle against Russia.