In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron engaged in discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a sense of calm in the aftermath of a clash between the U.S. and Ukrainian leaders at the White House the previous day. Macron also reached out to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, European Council President Antonio Costa, and NATO chief Mark Rutte ahead of an upcoming meeting of European leaders focused on Ukraine, scheduled to take place in London on Sunday.
During an extraordinary meeting in the Oval Office on Friday, Trump raised the possibility of withdrawing support for Ukraine, a move that stirred concern among European leaders who fear that a hasty ceasefire could embolden Russia’s expansionist tendencies, particularly in the wake of the country’s invasion of Ukraine three years prior. Macron, in an interview with various Sunday newspapers, stressed the importance of maintaining composure, showing respect, and expressing gratitude to pave the way for concrete progress, given the critical nature of the situation at hand.
Macron and Starmer emerged as leaders in Europe advocating for a cautious approach and urging Trump to refrain from hastily agreeing to a ceasefire, while also pushing for security guarantees for Ukraine. They presented a proposal for the deployment of peacekeepers in Ukraine during their meetings in Washington earlier in the week.
In the interview, Macron revealed that Zelenskiy had expressed a willingness to re-establish dialogue with the United States, including discussions on a potential agreement granting the U.S. access to revenues generated from Ukraine’s natural resources. However, details of Trump’s response to this proposal were not disclosed.
Quoted by La Tribune Dimanche, Macron underscored his belief in the United States’ inherent alignment with Ukraine, stating, “America’s manifest destiny is to be alongside Ukrainians, I have no doubts about that. I want the Americans to understand that withdrawing support to Ukraine is not in their interest.”
Looking ahead to a planned European Union summit on March 6, Macron expressed hope for unanimous backing of a collective debt plan at the EU level, aimed at raising “several hundred billion euros” for European defense initiatives.
(Reporting by Michel Rose, Elizabeth Pineau, and Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Timothy Heritage)
