Ignored by US-Russia, Europe Insists on Involvement in Ukraine War Resolution

PARIS, TUESDAY - European leaders have asserted that they must have a voice in the negotiations between the United States and Russia to end the war in Ukraine. However, so far, Washington and Moscow seem to be ignoring Europe on this matter. Frustrated with the US-Russia stance, Europe held a counter-meeting in Paris, while the US and Russia negotiated in Riyadh.

The leaders of Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the European Union met for more than three hours at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on Monday (17/2/2025) local time or Tuesday morning Indonesian time.

The emergency meeting in Paris was initiated by French President Emmanuel Macron, after US President Donald Trump did not include Europe or Ukraine in bilateral talks with Russia in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. The meeting in Riyadh was held as an initial meeting in the negotiation process to end the Ukraine-Russia war.

Shortly before the meeting, Macron spoke with Trump. However, Macron's office was unwilling to disclose the details of the 20-minute discussion.

The meeting in Paris also agreed that Europe would increase aid for the war in Ukraine. However, the European leaders have not yet reached a consensus on sending peacekeeping troops to the battlefield. Many European Union countries are still hesitant to send troops, while some others firmly oppose it.

The United Kingdom is one of the countries that has expressed readiness to consider sending troops to the Ukrainian region. However, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated that there must be a security commitment from the United States for European countries to deploy troops on the ground.

"There must be a guarantee from the US, because US security guarantees are the only effective way to prevent Russia from attacking Ukraine again," said Starmer after the meeting in Paris.

There must be a US guarantee, because a US security guarantee is the only effective way to prevent Russia from attacking Ukraine again.

He said it was too early to say how many British troops he would be willing to deploy. Starmer said he would travel to Washington next week to meet Trump to discuss what Europe sees as a key element of lasting peace.

Not only would a peacekeeping force increase the risk of direct confrontation with Russia, it would also burden European forces, which are already heavily depleted of their arsenals to supply Ukraine.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she was open to discussing troop deployment. She also agreed that Europe should increase support for Ukraine while increasing domestic defense spending. "Russia is now threatening all of Europe," she said.

Meanwhile, Germany and Italy have yet to agree on sending troops to Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz even left the meeting before it was over.

Scholz said talk of sending troops on the ground was premature. He considered the plan inappropriate. "This is absolutely inappropriate. Frankly, we don't even know what the outcome will be," he added.

He reiterated that a peace agreement with Russia cannot be imposed on Ukraine from the outside. "We welcome the ongoing talks, that peace is developing everywhere. But for us it must be clear, it does not mean that peace can be dictated and that Ukraine must accept what is presented to it," he said after leaving the Elysee Palace.

At the Paris meeting, Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni described the option of sending troops as very complicated and ineffective. Italian news agency ANSA reported that at the meeting, Meloni urged European leaders to find another way and involve the US.

Meanwhile, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said any peace deal must involve the European Union and Ukraine actively. This is to prevent the deal from being a sham. "What is not possible is that the aggressor is given a reward," he said.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned the ceasefire should not lead to a re-consolidation of logistics by Russia followed by new attacks.

From Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said negotiations with Europe were progressing quickly. “The recent US steps have accelerated things,” he said at a virtual press conference.

But Zelenskyy said a strong US position would remain important for the foreseeable future, as it would take years for European countries to ramp up defense production and integrate it into an effective force.

Zelenskyy said Macron had agreed to brief him on the conclusions of the Paris meeting.

At the meeting, European countries vowed to increase defense spending to boost support for Ukraine. Most have committed to increasing defense spending to 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

"It is time for Europe to have much greater capacity to defend itself," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said after the meeting in Paris.

Tusk said the meeting unanimously voted to increase the defense budget. “This is an absolute necessity,” he said.

Poland spends more than 4 percent of GDP on defense, more than any other NATO member.

The Paris meeting drew criticism from a number of European Union (EU) leaders themselves. This is because the meeting did not involve all EU members.

Slovenian President Natasa Pirc Musar said the selective invitation list was proof that EU member states were not treated equally.

"This is not a Europe that is respected abroad. This is not a Europe that will be a serious partner to North American allies," he said.

This could be a stumbling block because to make a decision, the European Union (EU) needs votes from 27 countries. Moreover, votes and partisanship within the EU are also divided.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, for example, has threatened to use his veto on a number of occasions.

Slovakia's populist Prime Minister Robert Fico also questioned the presence of the EU's top representative at the meeting, saying the EU had no right to decide on the deployment of foreign troops in a country.

On their first visit to Europe last week, top US officials from the Trump administration left the impression that Washington was ready to embrace the Kremlin and abandon its long-standing European allies.

General Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, said it was unconscionable to bring all parties to the negotiating table. "We know how that works. Our goal is to keep the negotiations as clean and as expeditious as we can," he told reporters in Brussels.

Kellogg is in Brussels to brief 31 U.S. NATO allies along with European Union officials. He will then travel to Kyiv for talks with Zelenskyy starting Wednesday.

From the Kremlin, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also questioned Europe's role. "I don't know what they should do at the negotiating table," he said as he arrived in Saudi Arabia for talks with U.S. officials on Monday.

Last week, US Vice President JD Vance and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attacked Europe by questioning its security commitments and fundamental democratic principles. The criticism was expressed in a series of speeches.

Macron said the US's sharp rebuke and threats not to cooperate in the face of the military threat were a shock.

The tipping point came when Trump held talks with Putin in the hope of ending the Russia-Ukraine war. This completely changed the US policy of allying with Europe that isolated Putin.

In Riyadh, high-level meetings are being held in preparation for the meeting between Trump and Putin. Ahead of the US-led talks in Riyadh, Russia has ruled out the possibility of handing over captured Ukrainian territory.

On Monday, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Present with him were US national security adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.

On the Russian side, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov will take part.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the talks would determine whether Russia is serious about peace talks. The Kremlin, meanwhile, said the talks would focus on restoring the complex Russian-American relationship. (AP/Reuters)