The informal meeting between the main European leaders in Paris, urgently organized by French President Emmanuel Macron to design their strategy for a potential peace process in Ukraine in light of the accelerated contacts between the US and Russia without involving them, concluded after more than two and a half hours of discussions.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was the first to speak. "We cannot impose a dictate on Ukraine." He emphasized the need to maintain military support for Ukraine while calling on EU member countries to spend at least 2% of their respective GDP on defense.
Scholz described the debate on the possibility of deploying European soldiers on a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine at this time, before even having a ceasefire agreement, as "highly inappropriate." The German leader insisted that there should be "no rift between Europe and the United States" and highlighted the importance of NATO.
"We want a lasting peace agreement and not just a pause for Putin," warned British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. "There is also peace in a broader sense, which is the security and defense of Europe. And there we have a generational challenge: we have to increase our capacity (militarily) and what we can do as Europeans."
Leaders from several countries traveled to the Élysée, such as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz; Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez; or the Prime Ministers of the Netherlands, Dick Schoof; and Poland, Donald Tusk.
The French President spoke on the phone with Donald Trump minutes before receiving the European leaders at the Élysée Palace. The meeting is expected to last for much of the afternoon.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who already ruled out sending troops to Ukraine for a hypothetical peacekeeping mission over the weekend, nevertheless took advantage of his attendance at the summit in Paris to call for an immediate strengthening of Europe's defenses to be able to "counterbalance Russia's military potential."
Meanwhile, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the first woman to serve as Defense Minister in Germany, urged the leaders gathered at the Élysée to use the meeting as a "turning point" in Europe: "We need a sense of urgency and an increase in defense spending, and we need both things now."
The meeting at the Élysée not only brings together EU leaders and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. It also includes the participation of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who on Monday morning offered to send British soldiers to Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping force if an agreement for a ceasefire is reached. Starmer's proposal, which could be joined by other European countries, will be discussed in the coming hours.
"The UK is willing to play a leading role in ensuring the defense and security of Ukraine," reads an article signed by the Labour leader, published today in The Daily Telegraph. Starmer has also committed to acting as a "bridge" between Europe and Donald Trump.
"Ensuring Ukraine's security is ensuring the security of our continent and our country," added Starmer on the eve of the European leaders' meeting in Paris. Sweden was the first country to step up and show its willingness to contribute to a peacekeeping force in the invaded country.
However, Starmer's proposal has exposed existing divisions within the bloc. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warned that the debate on the possible role of European soldiers in a peacekeeping force in Ukraine is "premature."
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, on the other hand, stated that the deployment of a peacekeeping mission is a matter for the UN and one that the EU "has nothing to do with."
"We must first negotiate a fair peace that respects international law," declared Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenegard. "And when we reach a peace agreement, it will be necessary to maintain it, and our government does not rule out any options."
Meanwhile, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares stated on Monday: "It is very premature to talk about deploying troops in Ukraine; there is no peace at the moment. Peace must go beyond a ceasefire; it must be fair and lasting, there can be no rewards for aggression." "When we have peace, we will have to see what conditions peace needs, and whenever the deployment of forces is discussed, we have to see for what mission, under what flag, with what mandate," the minister concluded during a press conference with his Brazilian counterpart at the Viana Palace, as reported by Marina Pina.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, representing the Baltic and Nordic countries, will play a key role in the emergency meeting in Paris. The meeting will serve to outline the European response to the negotiations initiated in Riyadh between Washington and Moscow, without the participation of Ukraine and disregarding European allies. The meeting will also serve to assess European defense capabilities and the future of NATO, including the possible automatic admission of Ukraine in case Russia violates the conditions of a hypothetical ceasefire.
Starmer himself stated last week that Ukraine's path to NATO is "irreversible." The Prime Minister aims to consolidate his role as a mediator towards Washington in Paris and will indeed play a role as a European envoy in his scheduled meeting next week with Donald Trump at the White House.
Furthermore, the Twenty-Seven will seek to increase their military aid to Kyiv rapidly this week in Brussels, with measures such as the urgent dispatch of one and a half million artillery shells, as several European diplomats assured on Monday.
"The EU will provide additional military assistance to Ukraine as soon as possible in 2025," reads a working document, which will be examined by the ambassadors of the 27 and of which AFP has obtained a copy. The document leaves blank the mention of the cost of this additional aid.