London and Paris are working with Kyiv on a plan to end the fighting between Ukraine and Russia, which will be presented to the United States, announced British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday, just hours before a crucial summit.
The British Prime Minister is hosting around fifteen European leaders in London on Sunday for a summit on security and Ukraine, and the guarantees Europe might offer Kyiv in anticipation of ending the conflict.
After discussions with the American, Ukrainian, and French presidents, Starmer stated, “We have agreed for the UK, along with France, and perhaps one or two other countries, to work with Ukraine on a plan to cease the fighting, and then we will discuss this plan with the United States.”
The Prime Minister outlined three conditions needed to achieve an agreement for “lasting peace.”
Firstly, Ukraine must be “in a position of strength to negotiate,” then there must be a “European element in terms of security guarantees,” and finally, an “American safety net.”
“These three elements must be in place,” he emphasised.
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Starmer stressed the importance of these security guarantees to prevent “the risk” of Russia reigniting conflict if Russian President Vladimir Putin “has the opportunity.” “I believe we need to eliminate such an opportunity, and that is why I am so committed to these guarantees. How to defend the future line of separation between Ukraine and Russia if a line is established in an agreement,” he explained without specifying its location.
Reflecting on the dramatic confrontation between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday, Starmer said “no one wants to see” such a scene, which made him “uncomfortable,” but “the important thing is how to respond.”
“The first way is to toughen the rhetoric, the other is to do what I did, roll up my sleeves, pick up the phone,” to call Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump. After intense discussions with both leaders and other European partners, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Starmer believed a “step in the right direction” had been made.
“It is very important that we maintain our central goal which is lasting peace in Ukraine,” he insisted.
