 "US security guarantees for Ukraine are ‘most important’ outcome of talks, says Macron")
French President Emmanuel Macron has said that the most significant outcome of the talks between European leaders and US President Donald Trump was Washington’s commitment to work on security guarantees for Ukraine.
“We have agreed on several important points that were not as clear a few days or weeks ago,” Macron said, adding that the “first and most important” was the US commitment to develop the security plans further.
The French president said that the “Coalition of the Willing”, a group established by European leaders in February, has now expanded to include 30 countries. Talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should begin bilaterally before expanding to include Trump, he added.
What do the security guarantees include?
Zelenskyy has said that he discussed Ukraine’s plans to purchase $90 billion in American weapons through European funding during the meeting with Trump and European leaders at the White House.
According to a report by the Financial Times, the security guarantees also include a $50bn deal to produce drones with Ukrainian companies. A document of the guarantees does not mention which weapons Kyiv intends to procure; however, Ukraine has been clear about its intentions to purchase at least 10 US-made Patriot air defence systems.
Speaking at a news conference after the White House meeting, Zelensky said the matter is still under discussion and no formal agreement has been reached. He added that the agreement is expected to be finalised within the next week to 10 days.
Zelenskyy-Putin to meet soon
Putin and Zelenskyy looked set for a peace summit after fast-moving talks Monday between Donald Trump and European leaders that focused on the key issue of long-term security guarantees for Kyiv.
Hopes of a breakthrough rose after Trump said he had spoken by phone with Russian counterpart Putin – whom he met in Alaska last week – following a “very good” meeting with the Europeans and the Ukrainian president at the White House.
It would be the first meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders since Moscow’s brutal invasion nearly three and a half years ago, and comes as Trump tries to live up to his promise to quickly end the war.
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