America’s peace plan for Ukraine is on everyone’s lips. As talks opened this Sunday between Ukrainian, European and American officials in Geneva (Switzerland), European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for the “central” role of the EU to be “fully recognized” in any peace plan for Ukraine.
With this meeting, European countries are trying their best not to be left behind in the negotiations around the plan proposed by Donald Trump in the middle of this week.
“Ukraine must have the freedom and sovereign right to choose its own destiny. Ukraine has chosen the fate of Europe,” said Ursula von der Leyen. For him, this destiny involves the reconstruction of Ukraine, its integration into the European single market and, ultimately, its full membership in the European Union.
“Any credible and lasting peace plan must end massacres and war, without planting the seeds of future conflict,” he stressed in a press release, also mentioning several elements, which he said were important, in this peace plan.
American plan deemed “insufficient”
The plan proposed by Donald Trump was also criticized by several European leaders. “We need the commitment of the United States to help end the war in Ukraine and stop Russian aggression (…) but the plan is not enough and has major weaknesses that we must overcome,” said Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg (South Africa).
He particularly stressed the need for Europe and Ukraine to take part in the negotiations. “There is no peace in Ukraine without Ukraine,” he stressed.
“Changing borders by force is unacceptable, and there are many statements in these 28 points where international law can do its job. We have key principles in the UN charter that govern how states function, and we have to look at them point by point,” said Jonas Gahr Støre. “I see new signals from the United States that they are ready to do this, and that is a positive thing,” he added.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he was “skeptical” about the possibility of reaching a deal on Ukraine on Thursday, “given the current differences”. “I’m not sure the solution that President Trump wants will be found in the coming days,” he said of the G20.
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would meet tomorrow with Vladimir Putin. “We will do everything possible to pave the way for peace,” he assured from Johannesburg.
