European leaders in Kyiv to mark three years of war, but top US officials stay away

KYIV - Ukraine hosted European leaders on Feb 24 to mark three years of all-out war with Russia, while top US officials stayed away in a clear illustration of President Donald Trump’s lurch towards Moscow since returning to power.

Still reeling from Mr Trump

calling President Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator”

and seeking elections that are banned by martial law, Kyiv said it was in the final stages of agreeing a deal with Washington to provide access to its mineral wealth.

After

meeting French President Emmanuel Macron

, Mr Trump said Mr Zelensky could travel to Washington this week or next to seal the minerals agreement, which he called “very close”, and suggested that the war in Ukraine could end within weeks. But he did not elaborate.

“Our focus is on achieving a ceasefire as soon as possible and, ultimately, a permanent peace,” Mr Trump said during a joint press conference with Mr Macron.

The minerals deal is at the heart of Kyiv’s bid to win US support, but officials have wrangled over its wording in the shadow of an extraordinary war of words between Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky, who said the US leader was living in a “disinformation bubble”.

Mr Trump’s rush to impose an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine – and his seeming embrace of part of the Kremlin narrative – has stoked fears of far-reaching US concessions to Russian President Vladimir Putin that could undermine Kyiv’s and Europe’s security and alter the geopolitical landscape.

Mr Zelensky refused to

sign an earlier draft

as Washington sought US$500 billion (S$669 billion) in natural wealth, saying that Kyiv had received nowhere near that much US aid and that the draft lacked the security guarantees Ukraine needs.

A Ukrainian government source told Reuters that Kyiv awaited US feedback on the “final changes” it had sent. The source said the US did not like the idea of including wording about providing security guarantees in the text.

“We see the issue of guarantees for the talks between presidents,” the source said.

‘Worried’ European foreign ministers

Mr Zelensky welcomed a slew of European and other leaders to a summit in Kyiv to commemorate the start in 2022 of the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II when Moscow invaded Ukraine.

“This year should be the year of the beginning of a real, lasting peace. (Russian President Vladimir) Putin will not gift us this peace, nor will he give it to us in exchange for anything. We have to win peace with strength, wisdom and unity – with our cooperation,” Mr Zelensky said.

The visitors to Kyiv on Feb 24 included European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, European Council president Antonio Costa, and the leaders of Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Norway, Spain and Sweden.

Leaders of Albania, Britain, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, Moldova, the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland and Turkey spoke by video link. There was no sign of US representation.

Ukraine could join the European Union before 2030 if it continues the speed and quality of its reforms, Dr von der Leyen said.

The European leaders rallied around Mr Zelensky in speeches, calling for countries on the continent to step up support for Kyiv, while some spoke of the urgent need to increase defence spending.

European officials have been left flat-footed by Mr Trump’s decisions to hold talks on ending the war in Ukraine with Russia, spurning both Kyiv and Europe, and by his administration’s warning that the US was no longer primarily focused on Europe’s security.

European foreign ministers said on Feb 24 that the region had entered a new era with Mr Trump’s stunning reversal of decades of US foreign policy, but that they still hoped the relationship with Washington could endure.

“It’s clear that the statements coming from (the) United States make us all worried,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

But she added that Europe and the US had worked out their differences before, “and we also expect to do so this time”.

Trump willing to go to Moscow

Rival texts at the UN

on Feb 24 further pitted the US against Ukraine and European allies.

The US was forced to abstain in a UN General Assembly vote on a resolution it drafted to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s war in Ukraine, after the 193-member body agreed to amendments proposed by European states.

Speaking to reporters, Mr Trump said he spoke to Group of Seven leaders on Feb 24 alongside Mr Macron, noting that everyone on the call expressed the goal of seeing Russia’s war in Ukraine end. He said he would be willing to go to Moscow.

In a post on Truth Social after the call, Mr Trump said he was also in “serious discussions” with Mr Putin about ending the war and “major economic development transactions which will take place between the United States and Russia”.

Mr Macron, meeting Mr Trump in the Oval Office, said Europe was prepared to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, including peacekeepers, in the event of a ceasefire.

Washington has made clear it will not send troops as a security guarantee coveted by Kyiv if a peace deal emerges, placing the burden on European powers that are likely to struggle without US backing.

Thousands of Ukrainian citizens have died and more than six million live as refugees abroad since Mr Putin ordered the invasion by land, sea and air.

Military losses have been catastrophic, although they remain closely guarded secrets. Public Western estimates based on intelligence reports vary widely, but most say hundreds of thousands have been killed or wounded on each side.

Russia launched 185 drones against Ukraine overnight but caused no significant damage, the Ukrainian air force said. Kyiv said it had hit Russia’s Ryazan refinery, continuing its campaign to degrade its enemy’s oil infrastructure. REUTERS