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President Volodymyr Zelensky joins EU’s 27 leaders to boost military support for his country
The US is destroying the rules-based world order by cozying up to the Putin regime in Russia, Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK says.
“It’s not just the axis of evil and Russia” disrupting the global system but “the US is finally destroying this order”, Valerii Zaluzhnyi told a conference hosted by the Chatham House think tank.
Talks between Washington and Moscow show that the White House is making “steps towards the Kremlin, trying to meet them halfway”, Mr Zaluzhnyi said.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky joined EU leaders for an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday.
Mr Zelensky thanked them for ensuring Ukraine was “not alone” in what EU chief Ursula von der Leyen described as a “watershed moment”.
“During all this period, and last week, you stayed with us. We are very thankful that we are not alone. And these are not just words — we feel it,” Mr Zelensky said.
Meanwhile, defence secretary John Healey is in Washington to meet with his US counterpart Pete Hegseth as he hopes to “strengthen” the bond between the two nations.
EU leaders have approved a statement in support of Ukraine without the backing of Hungary, an official has said.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is seen as Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in Europe and has supported talks between US and Russia.
The document has not yet been officially published but in it the 27 leaders back plans to boost defence spending and to loosen rules to allow individual countries to invest in the bloc’s security.
A statement on the European Council’s website says: „The European Union will accelerate the mobilisation of the necessary instruments and financing in order to bolster the security of the European Union and the protection of our citizens.“
The defence secretary said he was “fixed” on the opportunity Donald Trump has created to secure peace in Ukraine ahead of a meeting with his US counterpart.
John Healey, who is in Washington to meet with Pete Hegseth, said: “I’m fixed on the historic opportunity the president has created to bring a lasting and secure peace to Ukraine.”
He added: “The President also has asked Europe to step up, and we are. The UK is ready to take on a leadership in that task. You saw that from Keir Starmer at the weekend, in the way that he is pulling the parties together, ensuring that we take Ukraine with us and that we work closely alongside the United States.
“And it’s the detail of those discussions which are rightly behind the scenes that the Defence Secretary and I will now pursue this afternoon.”
U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, said on Thursday he is in discussions with Ukraine for a peace agreement framework to end hostilities with Russia and that a meeting is planned next week with the Ukrainians in Saudi Arabia.
„We’re now in discussions to coordinate a meeting with the Ukrainians,“ Witkoff told reporters at the White House. He said it would likely be in Riyadh or Jeddah.
Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky had acrimonious talks at the White House on February 28 but since then the two sides have resumed work on a revenue-sharing minerals deal.
At his speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, Trump said he had received a letter from Zelensky in which the Ukrainian leader said he was „ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible.“
Referring to the Saudi Arabia meeting, Witkoff said, „I think the idea is to get down a framework for a peace agreement and an initial ceasefire as well.“
Speaking to reporters, John Healey said he came to America to „strengthen“ the defence „bond“ between the US and UK.
His US counterpart Pete Hegseth says the media is interested in „narratives“ around Ukraine and Russia but Donald Trump is interested in peace.
Asked about Donald Trump’s decision to halt military aid to Kyiv, Pete Hegseth says: „As the president has pointed out, it is a pause. Exactly what he said from the beginning. Pause – pending a true commitment to a path to peace.“
He adds Trump is „paying a very keen eye“ to what Kyiv is „saying and doing about committing to that peace process“.
„And we’re very encouraged by the signs we’re seeing,“ he adds.
The UK would would welcome engagement from any country that wishes to be part of the coalition of the willing, Downing Street has said.
Asked about reports that the Middle East could be involved in the efforts, a No 10 spokesman said: “We welcome engagement from any country that wishes to be part of the coalition of the willing.”
Turkey has reportedly indicated it could play a part in peacekeeping efforts.
Defence secretary John Healey is currently meeting with his US counterpart Pete Hegseth in Washington, after arriving in the US to continue discussions on the blockage of military aid and intelligence to Ukraine.
The pair will hold a bilateral meeting on a possible peace plan while efforts continue to bridge a transatlantic rift over the country’s future security.
Mr Healey’s trip was agreed after Sir Keir Starmer announced a rise in the UK’s defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP.
Ukraine was given „fair warning“ by the White House before President Donald Trump this week ordered a pause on US military assistance and intelligence sharing with Kyiv, a senior administration official has said.
The Republican administration announced the pauses this week after Mr Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Oval Office meeting devolved into a shouting match, with the US president and vice president JD Vance criticising the Ukrainian leader for being insufficiently grateful.
Retired Lt Gen Keith Kellogg, Mr Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, said the pause is already having an impact on Kyiv, adding that the Ukrainians „brought it on themselves“.
„The best way I can describe it is sort of like hitting a mule with a two-by-four across the nose,“ Mr Kellogg said at an event on Thursday at the Council on Foreign Relations. „You got their attention.“
Mr Kellogg said it was made clear to the Ukrainians before last week’s Oval Office meeting that the talks would focus on signing a critical minerals deal.
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Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump ‘destroying world order’ says Kyiv as EU meets Zelensky in show of unity – The Independent
