Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Friday the holding of a summit bringing together several European leaders allied from kyiv this Saturday in Ukraine. “We are preparing to meet the leaders of the volunteer coalition. Tomorrow, we are going to have meetings,” he said during a speech published by his press service.
This “coalition of volunteers”, created this year under the leadership of France and the United Kingdom, reflects the growing concern of Europeans as to the solidity of American support in Ukraine, after more than three years of Russian invasion. “We need this coalition, and it should be strong enough to guarantee security, in accordance with our common vision,” said the Ukrainian president.
kyiv is looking for clear security guarantees from his allies to protect himself against any future Russian aggression. Among the options envisaged by this coalition is the possibility of a limited deployment of foreign contingents in Ukraine.
In parallel, Zelensky revealed that he informed US President Donald Trump, during a recent telephone interview that a 30-day cease-fire would constitute a “real indicator” of progress towards peace, and that Ukraine was ready to apply it immediately. This proposal, initially formulated by Trump in March, had received the approval of kyiv, while Moscow conditioned his acceptance on the implementation of reliable monitoring measures.
If Zelensky has not unveiled the list of participants in this summit, the new German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently announced his intention to go to Ukraine soon, suggesting his possible presence at this strategic meeting.
