London, Aug 17: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer joined a video call with European allies on Sunday ahead of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the White House next week for talks with US President Donald Trump over the country’s ongoing conflict with Russia.
Starmer was joined by French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as hosts of the “Coalition of the Willing”, after Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a summit in Alaska in pursuit of peace on Friday.
Starmer praised the American President’s efforts, which he said had “brought us closer than ever before to ending Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine” and reiterated Europe’s “unwavering support” for Ukraine.
“His leadership in pursuit of an end to the killing should be commended. While progress has been made, the next step must be further talks involving President Zelenskyy. The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without him,” Starmer said in a statement issued by Downing Street.
“I welcome the openness of the United States, alongside Europe, to provide robust security guarantees to Ukraine as part of any deal.”
Calling it “important progress”, he said it will be crucial in “deterring Putin from coming back for more”.
“In the meantime, until he (Putin) stops his barbaric assault, we will keep tightening the screws on his war machine with even more sanctions, which have already had a punishing impact on the Russian economy and its people,” Starmer said.
On Saturday, in a joint statement with Macron, Merz and other European Union (EU) leaders, Starmer welcomed Trump’s debrief following his meeting with Putin which ended without any ceasefire agreement.
“As President Trump said ‘there’s no deal until there’s a deal’. As envisioned by President Trump, the next step must now be further talks including President Zelenskyy, whom he will meet soon,” the leaders said.
“The Coalition of the Willing is ready to play an active role. No limitations should be placed on Ukraine’s armed forces or on its cooperation with third countries. Russia cannot have a veto against Ukraine‘s pathway to EU and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation). It will be up to Ukraine to make decisions on its territory. International borders must not be changed by force,” they noted.
It came as some media reports indicate that Putin expects Ukraine to withdraw from the Donbas region, parts of which Russia has attempted to occupy during the conflict.
‘The Financial Times’ reported that the Russian President told Trump that he would freeze the conflict along much of the frontline if his demands were met. (PTI)
