Monday Briefing: E.U. Leaders Set to Meet on Ukraine

Cut out of Ukraine talks, E.U. leaders regroup

Europeans leaders are set to convene an emergency meeting in Paris today to discuss the war in Ukraine and European security, French officials said yesterday. The aim is to coordinate a response to the Trump administration’s opening of talks with Russia about ending the war with Ukraine, without an apparent role for Europe — or Kyiv — in the process.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine reiterated in interviews over the weekend that his country would “never” accept a peace deal struck by the U.S. and Russia if Kyiv did not have a seat at the negotiations.

What’s next: Three of President Trump’s top foreign policy aides are set to meet with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia later this week to discuss a path to ending the war.

Security: Recent remarks by Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have fueled concerns that the U.S. will move away from Europe and align with Moscow. Such a shift, analysts say, would give Putin a previously unthinkable victory far greater than any objectives in Ukraine.

No deal: Trump suggested that Ukraine sign over half its mineral resources in exchange for past and future U.S. support. Zelensky rejected such a deal, citing a lack of security guarantees.

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