Ukraine’s Allies to Hold Military Chiefs’ Meeting Next Week

Several world leaders participated in a call on Saturday, including the heads of France, Finland, Poland, Germany, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte were also present.

Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, who has positioned herself as a key European link to U.S. President Donald Trump, took part in the discussion, despite earlier speculation that she might abstain. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was also among the participants.

'Not Enough'

Following Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s commitment to a 30-day unconditional ceasefire, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer described Ukraine as “the party of peace,” contrasting it with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he accused of attempting to stall a truce.

In a televised speech on Thursday, Putin responded to a peace proposal from the U.S. and Ukraine with a series of conditions. Meanwhile, Trump’s National Security Adviser, Mike Waltz, stated that Washington maintained “some cautious optimism” regarding the potential for a ceasefire agreement.

Starmer was firm in his stance, stating, “The ‘yes, but’ from Russia is not good enough.” He called on Putin to agree to an immediate ceasefire, declaring, “This is the moment for the guns to fall silent and for the barbaric attacks on Ukraine to finally stop.”

Additionally, the leaders discussed imposing new sanctions unrelated to Russia’s frozen assets, which would be implemented as a result of their discussions that morning, Starmer confirmed.