European countries will meet in Paris this Monday to discuss Ukraine situation

Leaders of the “main European countries” will meet on Monday (17) to address the situation of and security in Europe, after the United States government implied that it will directly negotiate with Russia to end the War on Ukrainian soil. The French President will receive “the main European countries” to discuss “European security,” confirmed the head of French diplomacy Jean-Noël Barrot, on the radio France Inter This Sunday (16).

The minister did not specify who will participate in this “working meeting”, but, according to a European diplomatic source, Germany, Poland, Italy, Denmark and the United Kingdom, which is no longer part of the European Union, will be present. The president of the European Council, António Costa, the president of the European Commission, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will also attend the meeting that was organized urgently, according to the same source. The meeting will take place at a particularly sensitive time for transatlantic relations.

US President Donald Trump surprised the Europeans on Wednesday by stating that there was. The announcement caused European leaders to be excluded from negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, invaded by Russia in February 2022. The issue was one of the main topics of the Munich Security Conference, which began on Friday ( 14) and will end this Sunday in the German city.

At the summit, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, said, in response to a question about European participation in negotiations: “I belong to the realistic school, I don’t think this will happen.” The head of French diplomacy emphasized that “only Ukrainians can decide to stop fighting, and we will support them until they make that decision.” They “will not stop until they are sure that the peace offered to them will be lasting” and until they have security guarantees, Barrot added over the Ukrainians.

*With information from AFP
Posted by Matheus Lopes