Ukraine’s allies discuss security guarantees, but say U.S. must help enforce any peace deal | CBC News

Some 30 Western leaders were holding talks on Thursday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over security guarantees for Kyiv in the event of a peace deal with Russia, hoping to do enough to persuade the United States to back their efforts.

The summit in Paris of the “coalition of the willing” brought together leaders from Europe, Australia, Japan and Canada, with even neighbouring countries choosing to attend by video-link.

Members of the coalition, which does not include the U.S., have talked for months at various levels to define their prospective military support for Ukraine to help deter Russia from attacking it again if and when there is a final truce, which is currently still a remote prospect.

But those efforts have stalled as governments have said any European military role would need its own U.S. security guarantees as a “backstop.” U.S. President Donald Trump has made no explicit commitment to provide those.

Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met French, British, German, Italian and Ukrainian senior diplomats ahead of the summit, before briefly attending the opening session.

Some of the leaders will call Trump after the summit, the French presidency said.

NATO chief scoffs at Russian opposition to peacekeepers

French President Emmanuel Macron said alongside Zelenskyy in Paris on Wednesday that the coalition leaders would endorse plans for security guarantees drawn up by their militaries.

British and French army chiefs were to brief the leaders on Thursday, according to an outline sent to attendees.

“We are ready, us Europeans, to provide security guarantees to Ukraine for when there is a signed peace,” Macron said, adding that it was now a question of seeing how sincere Russia was.

The two European officials said the aim would be to send a political signal to Trump. This would highlight the lack of progress toward direct peace talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy since Trump hosted Putin in August and to prod Trump to raise pressure on Moscow.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Wednesday he expected clarity from the coalition soon on what could be delivered, and this would pave the way for more intense discussions with Washington on what guarantees it could provide.

Western officials say the key element of the guarantees will be continuing strong support for Ukraine’s armed forces.

But they were also expected to include an international force to assist and reassure Kyiv, based both in Ukraine and in neighbouring countries, even though Russia is emphatically opposed to any foreign deployment in Ukraine.

“Why are we interested in what Russia thinks about troops in Ukraine? It’s a sovereign country. Russia has nothing to do with this,” Rutte said at a conference in Prague before joining the summit on Thursday. “I think we really have to stop making Putin too powerful.”

European leaders have made clear such a force will only be feasible with U.S. backing — something Trump has suggested in interviews, in general terms, could include U.S. air defence support.

But Washington has yet to spell out what it is willing to contribute, and Trump has ruled out putting American troops on the ground in Ukraine and has repeatedly boasted that his administration has now coaxed European countries to buy arms directly from U.S. defence contractors. No money was allocated for Ukraine in Trump’s signature first-year legislation, whereas Joe Biden’s administration spent over $60 billion US in direct military aid for Ukraine.

As well, Trump has warned of “severe consequences” for Putin if he is not serious about moving toward a ceasefire but has balked thus far at applying more sanctions on the Russian economy.

WATCH l Weighing what Canada could contribute to post-war Ukraine: 

Sending Canadian troops to Ukraine would face obstacles

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s suggestion that he won’t rule out sending Canadian troops to Ukraine if a ceasefire deal is reached has been met with reminders of potential obstacles, including Russia not wanting NATO members there as peacekeepers and the fact that the Canadian Armed Forces are already stretched thin.

On his first trip to Kviv as Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney said last month that it “it is not realistic that the only security guarantee could be the strength of the Ukrainian Armed Forces … that needs to be buttressed and reinforced.”

Canada’s last major role in peacekeeping occurred in Mali, ending in 2023. 

Countries such as Poland and Romania are among those who have appeared to rule out putting peacekeeping troops in Ukraine.

‘Incoherent’ U.S. diplomacy: analyst

John Foreman, a former British defence attache to Kyiv and Moscow, said it was important to understand exactly what is on offer — especially for Zelenskyy as he weighs his position ahead of any direct talks with Russia.

“That said, there is growing realization that peace will require a strong Ukraine and Ukrainian army, that European support will need to be long-lasting, and that Ukraine probably can’t rely on its allies coming to its aid to punish Russia should it re-attack,” he said.

“This is all prep work for a peace which remains illusory and remote due to Trump’s incoherent diplomacy and the lack of substantive talks.”

Having rolled out the red carpet in Alaska, Trump on Wednesday accused Putin of conspiring with China and North Korea after the three countries’ leaders staged a show of unity in Beijing at a lavish commemoration of the end of the Second World War. 

Putin told Kyiv on Wednesday there was a chance to end the war in Ukraine via negotiations “if common sense prevails,” an option he said he preferred, although he was ready to end it by force if that was the only way.

WATCH l Russia tests European resolve with attacks, says Atlantic Council analyst: 

The Breakdown | Making sense of Russia’s war strategy

With another major attack on Ukraine’s capital, The National breaks down Russia’s strategy of repeatedly following up peace talks with more deadly strikes.