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The Ukrainian president will meet with the Prime Minister, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz in London
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Volodymyr Zelensky will meet with Sir Keir Starmer and other European leaders in London on Monday to discuss a US-brokered plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine after Donald Trump claimed Kyiv “isn’t ready” to accept his proposal.
The Ukrainian president will discuss details of the plan with the prime minister, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The talks signify another show of support from Kyiv’s allies following another attack by Trump on the Ukrainian government. On Sunday, the US president said he was “disappointed” that Zelensky “hasn’t yet read the proposal” drafted by the US following talks with Ukrainian officials in Miami over the past week.
An original plan drafted by Washington last month sparked anger after it appeared to cede to all of Russia’s demands.
“Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelensky’s fine with it. His people love it it. But he isn’t ready,” Trump said.
A flurry of diplomatic activity between the US, Russia and Ukraine in the past week has proved unsuccessful, with both sides no closer to agreeing to a peace deal than before Trump took office again in January.
After months on the sidelines of US-led peace talks, Europe is trying to rise to the challenge of guaranteeing Ukraine’s post-war future in the event of a ceasefire.
Britain and France are leading the push for a so-called reassurance force in Ukraine to retrain the army and uphold a peace deal if it emerges.
Downing Street said Britain is making plans for the multinational force drawn from partners on the continent, despite the Kremlin’s rejection this week of any foreign deployment as “unacceptable”.
Thousands of allied troops could be sent to cities across Ukraine to help the army recover its strength and stand as an independent deterrent to Russian aggression – if both sides can agree to terms.
The plans are months in the making, forged from discussions between Kyiv and the coalition of the willing about what security guarantees are needed to end the war.
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As we previously reported, Donald Trump said he Kyiv “isn’t ready” to sign the US peace proposal while talking to reporters last night.
US and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences on the US administration’s proposal. But in an exchange with reporters on Sunday night, Trump suggested that the Ukrainian leader is holding up the talks from moving forward.
“I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelensky hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn’t,” Trump claimed in an exchange with reporters before taking part in the Kennedy Center Honors.
The president added, “Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelenskyy’s fine with it. His people love it it. But he isn’t ready.”
Kyiv’s lead negotiator Rustem Umerov said on Monday morning that the Ukrainian president would receive all documents relating to the new peace plan today.
At least seven people were hurt after Russian drones hit a residential building in Okhtyrka, a city in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region, according to governor Oleh Hryhorov.
The Sumy region, which borders Russia, has been subjected to almost continuous shelling and drone strikes since Moscow began its full-scale invasion in February 2022, with the conflict now approaching its fourth year.
In a message posted on Telegram, Hryhorov said the injured residents were taken to a hospital, where two were admitted for further care, while the remaining victims were treated and later released.
He reported that the multi-storey building suffered significant destruction and noted that some occupants managed to reach the basement after air-raid alerts, while emergency responders helped evacuate others from higher floors.
The Independent is unable to independently confirm the details, and Moscow has not yet issued a response to the incident.
Both Ukraine and Russia maintain that they do not intentionally target civilians, although thousands — most of them Ukrainian — have been killed since the war began.
The Independent’s political editor David Maddox reports:
Much will hinge on Keir Starmer at today’s mini summit in Ukraine with President Volodymyr Zelensky, France’s Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The four men will be poring over Donald Trump’s controversial peace plan for Ukraine which seems in some ways to have been drawn up in Moscow.
The two issues being discussed will be how much can Zelensky swallow and sell to Ukrainians in exchange for peace and how much they can all persuade Trump to modify the plan in Ukraine’s favour.
It is a careful balance but Sir Keir’s position is pivotal not only as the host of the summit but the one they all regard as the “Trump whisperer”.
Starmer appears to be the one leader the US president is willing to trust, respect and listen to. Macron’s own double talk has not endeared him to the president.
So whatever is agreed today will have to be sold to the White House by Sir Keir with everyone keeping their fingers crossed that he can persuade the president.
Leaders from seven EU member states have been calling for the bloc to move ahead quickly with the proposal to use frozen Russian assets to provide financing to Ukraine.
“Supporting Ukraine in their fight for freedom and independence is not only a moral obligation it is also in our own self-interest,” the leaders from Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden said in a letter sent to EU Council president Antonio Costa and EU Commission’s president Ursula von der Leyen.
“We must therefore move ahead quickly on the Commission’s proposals to use the cash balances from Russia’s immobilized assets for a reparations loan to Ukraine.”
Russia has attacked Ukraine with 149 drones overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force has said in its daily update.
Air defences downed 131 of the drones, but some managed to hit their targets.
Strikes were recorded by 16 drones across 11 locations in the country’s “north, south and east”, the update read.
The drones were launched from the Russian cities of Bryansk, Oryol, Kursk, Primorsko-Akhtarsk and Millerovo, as well as from temporarily occupied Donetsk and Cape Chuda in Crimea, the Air Force said according to Ukrainska Pravda.
As we reported earlier, Sir Keir Starmer will welcome Volodymyr Zelensky to Downing Street to discuss peace plans on Monday as Russia continues to bombard Ukraine.
The meeting, also attended by French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz, is expected to focus on how to respond to American proposals for ending the war with Russia.
Mr Zelensky’s visit to London comes after his officials concluded three days of talks with their US counterparts on those proposals as the White House presses Kyiv to accept a deal.
Over the weekend, Mr Zelensky said he had discussed “next steps” with Donald Trump’s advisers and was “determined to keep working in good faith”. But the negotiators also acknowledged that any “real progress” will depend “on Russia’s readiness to show serious commitment to long-term peace”.
Sir Keir has repeatedly said that Ukraine must be allowed to determine its own future, while one of his senior ministers said on Sunday that the country must not be left “toothless” in the face of Russian aggression.
The leaders will hope the meeting proves to be more than a photo op – but a real breakthrough in peace negotiations will as ever remain in the hands of the US and Russia.
Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni reaffirmed Italy’s backing for the ongoing efforts to achieve a peace agreement in Ukraine during a phone call with Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a government spokesperson.
Zelensky is scheduled to meet with UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron, and Germany’s Friedrich Merz at Downing Street today to discuss the newest US-led attempts to bring the conflict to an end.
The spokesperson said Meloni conveyed Italy’s solidarity after another wave of Russian strikes on civilian targets in Ukraine.
In the statement, the government said: “Ukraine’s reiterated willingness to sit in good faith at the negotiating table is instrumental to this process.”
It added that “The hope that Russia will demonstrate a similar openness was therefore reiterated.”
President Donald Trump yesterday claimed Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky “isn’t ready” to sign off on a US-authored peace proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war.
Trump was critical of Zelensky after US and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences on the US administration’s proposal.
But in an exchange with reporters last night, Trump suggested that the Ukrainian leader is holding up the talks from moving forward.
“I’m a little bit disappointed that President Zelensky hasn’t yet read the proposal, that was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn’t,” Trump claimed in an exchange with reporters before taking part in the Kennedy Center Honors.
The president added: “Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I’m not sure that Zelensky’s fine with it. His people love it. But he isn’t ready.”
Russian president Vladimir Putin hasn’t publicly expressed approval for the White House plan.
In fact, Putin last week had said that aspects of Trump’s proposal were unworkable, even though the original draft heavily favoured Moscow.
Volodymyr Zelensky will be briefed about his team’s discussions with US officials and receive all documents related to the peace plan on Monday, Kyiv’s senior negotiator Rustem Umerov said.
The negotiator has said that the primary task of Kyiv’s negotiating team during recent talks was to be fully informed on US conversations in Moscow and all drafts of current proposals.
“Together with all partners, we must do everything possible for a dignified end to this war,” he said.
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