The French leader’s attempts to get US security guarantees for Ukraine were a “waste of time,” a source has told the outlet
French President Emmanuel Macron failed to secure any concrete US security guarantees for Ukraine during his recent talks with President Donald Trump in Washington, Politico reported on Wednesday, citing sources.
Trump met with Macron at the White House on Monday, where the US leader reiterated his desire for an end to the hostilities between Russia and Ukraine, while refraining from condemning Moscow. Macron agreed that he also wanted “a strong and lasting peace in Ukraine,” but stressed that this “must be accompanied by strong and credible security guarantees for the Ukrainians.”
According to Politico, Macron tried to get assurances for Kiev from Trump, but without much success, and later briefed his EU counterparts on the results of the talks during a hastily convened 30-minute video conference.
“[Macron] said that Trump did not give any clear promises regarding the backstop. So, indeed, strategic ambiguity on this question remains,” an EU diplomat said, referring to a potential peacekeeping force in Ukraine. Another senior European official was even more blunt in his assessment, branding the Macron-Trump meeting “a waste of time.”
Following the meeting, Trump said he is “not going to make security guarantees beyond very much,” adding that the main burden should be carried by the EU. He has also made clear that no US troops would be sent to Ukraine, although EU officials still reportedly hope that Washington could provide peacekeepers with various kinds of support, including intelligence, air defense, and logistics.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Britain and France are eyeing a plan to deploy up to 30,000 “peacekeepers” in Ukraine if Moscow and Kiev reach a ceasefire. The force would protect key Ukrainian facilities rather than be deployed directly to the front line, with the report noting that “without Trump’s backing, the European plan to send peacekeepers faces a difficult path.”
Russia has repeatedly voiced its opposition to the deployment of unauthorized peacekeepers in Ukraine, warning that they would be considered legitimate targets. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said deploying NATO troops under the guise of peacekeepers in Ukraine would contradict Moscow’s key goal of keeping its neighbor out of the US-led military bloc.
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has acknowledged that the US will not provide Kiev with the security guarantees it wanted as part of an as-yet unsigned deal which would grant the US access to Ukraine’s deposits of rare earths. However, The Economist has reported, citing sources, that Zelensky does not intend to sign any second agreement on the matter that does not include broader security guarantees.
