French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Donald Trump have held talks at the White House, revealing war in Ukraine could end “within weeks”, staying tight lipped on how that result could be achieved.
Mr Trump said the purpose of the pairs meeting was to “end the war”.
“I think the war (in Ukraine) could end soon, within weeks, if we’re smart,” Mr Trump said alongside Mr Macron in the Oval Office.
“If we’re not smart it will keep going. We don’t want that.
“Remember what I said, this could escalate into a third world war, we don’t want that either.”
Mr Macron says some European countries would be ready to have peacekeepers in Ukraine as a security guarantee after a peace treaty is signed, although they would not be sent to the front line.
He indicated that the peace deal could come in a second phase, after what he called a “truce”.
Mr Trump said he does not see a problem with European troops being sent to Ukraine to serve as peacemakers.
The US president said on Monday the United States was “very close” to securing a minerals deal with Ukraine.
He said he might meet Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky later this week or next week to seal the agreement.
“He may come in this week or next week to sign the agreement, which would be nice,” Mr Trump said of Mr Zelensky.
He said he would also be meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin at some point.
Mr Trump said the United States backed the idea of sending European peacekeeping troops into Ukraine, revealing he had raised the concept with Mr Putin and that the Russian leader would accept it.
Mr Macron said that the strength of US re-engagement with Russia is a source of uncertainty for Mr Putin.
Asked if Ukraine should be willing to cede territory to Russia as part of a negotiated end to the war, Trump said “We’ll see”.
Mr Macron became the first European leader to visit Mr Trump since he regained power a month ago.
He was at the White House for a morning session that lasted an hour and 45 minutes, including both leaders participating in a video conference with other G7 leaders about Ukraine.
United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer is to visit Mr Trump later in the week, amid alarm in Europe over Mr Trump’s hardening stance towards Ukraine and overtures to Russia on the three-year-old conflict.
Turkish officials said on Monday they were ready to host possible talks between Ukraine and Russia and would support any initiative leading to peace, following a visit to Ankara by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
NATO-member Turkey hosted initial talks between the sides months after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, helping secure a deal for the safe passage of grain exports in the Black Sea.
Speaking alongside Mr Lavrov on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Turkey valued a US initiative for peace as a “result-oriented” approach but repeated that both sides must participate in the search for a solution.
“In that framework, we are ready to contribute all forms of support for peace to be achieved through talks. We are ready to host these talks as we have done before,” Mr Fidan said.
While he did not repeat Turkey’s long-held stance supporting Ukraine’s territorial integrity, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan did so in a separate video message marking the anniversary.
Asked about the security guarantees Ukraine has demanded from the United States and other allies for ending the war, Mr Fidan said Turkey was “ready to take any step contributing to peace in principle”.
Mr Lavrov said Russia’s position on the conditions needed to end war had not changed and that scrapping Ukraine’s bid for NATO membership was non-negotiable.
He later met Mr Erdogan.
Mr Zelensky visited Turkey for talks with Mr Erdogan last week, on the same day US and Russian representatives met for talks aimed at ending the war in Riyadh without Ukraine’s participation.
Mr Zelensky said on Sunday that he viewed Turkey as an important security guarantor for Ukraine.
The Ukrainian president paid tribute to his country’s resistance on Monday, as it marked the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
“I am proud of Ukraine,” Mr Zelensky wrote on Telegram, commemorating the soldiers who died in battle.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov meanwhile emphasised the country’s will to continue fighting.
“Ukrainian warriors fight for every metre of our land,” he wrote on X, adding that “the whole country is working towards victory”.
– With Reuters, DPA
https://thewest.com.au/politics/world-politics/donald-trump-emmanuel-macron-discuss-ukraine-peace-at-white-house-meeting-ukraine-war-could-end-in-weeks-c-17838706
