Putin would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine in deal to end war – Trump

Mr Trump made the comments to reporters at a start of a meeting at the White House on Monday with French President Emmanuel Macron on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Yeah, he will accept it,” Mr Trump said. “I have asked him that question. Look, if we do this deal, he’s not looking for world war.”

Russia’s foreign ministry said on Saturday that preparations for a face-to-face meeting between Mr Trump and Mr Putin were under way, and US officials have said that they agreed with Moscow to re-establish diplomatic ties and restart economic co-operation.

At a virtual meeting with leaders of the G7 also held on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine and the US are “working productively” on an economic agreement that would help lock them together.

Mr Trump attended the meeting.

“And, President Trump, we would really like to hear from you because all our people, all our families, are very worried. Will there be support from America? Will America be the leader of the free world?” Mr Zelensky said.

Speaking in Washington, Mr Trump said he is hopeful the US and Ukraine will soon come to terms on a rare earth minerals deal.

“It looks like we’re getting very close,” Mr Trump told reporters. He added that Mr Zelensky could potentially visit Washington this week or next to sign the deal.

But Mr Trump did not say whether the emerging deal would include US security guarantees.

“Europe is going to make sure nothing happens,” he said.

At Downing Street, Sir Keir Starmer said the UK has imposed further sanctions on Russia in an attempt to force Mr Putin “not just to talk, but to make concessions”.

The Prime Minister claimed Mr Trump has “changed the global conversation” around the conflict, but that this provided an “opportunity”.

He then repeated calls for Ukraine to have a seat at the table for any peace talks, and for a US “backstop” to any peace agreement, which he is expected to discuss with Mr Trump when he visits Washington later this week.

In a push back against the rhetoric of Mr Trump, Sir Keir added that Mr Putin “does not hold all the cards in this war”, pointing to Ukraine’s continued “courage to defend their country” and the prospect of tightened sanctions hitting the Russian economy.

In a remote address to the meeting in Kyiv, he said: “We must keep dialling up the economic pressure to get Putin to a point where he is ready not just to talk, but to make concessions.

“President Trump has changed the global conversation over the last few weeks, and it has created an opportunity. Now we must get the fundamentals right.

“If we want peace to endure, Ukraine must have a seat at the table, and any settlement must be based on a sovereign Ukraine backed up with strong security guarantees.

“The UK is ready and willing to support this with troops on the ground, with other Europeans and with the right conditions in place and, ultimately, a US backstop will be vital to deter Russia from launching another invasion in just a few years’ time.”

Downing Street clarified that Sir Keir meant the US president had changed the global conversation around Ukraine “for the better”.

Sir Keir explained the new package of UK measures will go after Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, used to transport oil and goods in defiance of sanctions, as well as companies in China and elsewhere providing Moscow with military components.

The Foreign Office announced 107 new designations, that include 40 “shadow fleet” ships and 14 “new kleptocrats”, including Russian billionaire Roman Trotsenko, as part of the largest sanctions package since 2022.

North Korean officials involved in sending troops to fight for Russia, Kyrgyz bank OJSC Keremet, and companies in China, Turkey and India that supply tools and goods to Russia’s military, were also listed.

The UK will put another £20 million into medical and rehabilitation support for Ukrainians on the front line, doubling the project’s funding, the Ministry of Defence said.

Mr Macron is in Washington for talks with Mr Trump ahead of a visit to the White House by Sir Keir planned for later this week.

Mr Trump’s talks with Russia, his description of Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky as a “dictator”, and claim that Kyiv started the war, have shattered the transatlantic alliance on the issue.

The Prime Minister held his second call in three days with Mr Zelensky on Sunday, saying he would be “progressing important discussions” about Kyiv’s security on his visit to Washington.

The Home Office has also announced a move to widen travel sanctions for Kremlin-linked elites.

In the House of Commons, Conservative former chancellor Jeremy Hunt said cuts to adult welfare would allow Sir Keir to commit to increasing defence spending to more than 3 per cent of GDP this week.

Mr Hunt, who was chancellor until the election was called in July last year, said the UK raising defence spending to match the US would secure the future of Ukraine and of Nato.

Mr Trump has been demanding Europe do more to pay for and provide for its own security, while engaging in talks with Russia that could broker peace in Ukraine.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said she is “absolutely committed” to spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence, and an increase in spending in line with what Labour promised in its manifesto will be done “in the proper way”.

Mr Hunt told MPs: “If the Government came forward with plans to reduce the number of adult welfare recipients just to 2019 levels that would save £40 billion a year.”

Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel also suggested repurposing some of the UK’s aid spending to boost national defence and security.