French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Paris on Monday, calling ongoing talks “a moment that could be a turning point” for peace in Ukraine and security in Europe.
The meetings are part of intense diplomatic efforts aimed at crafting terms for a possible ceasefire in the nearly four-year conflict. Zelenskyy’s visit followed a meeting between Ukrainian and US officials in Florida on Sunday, which Secretary of State Marco Rubio described as productive. The two sides have worked to revise a US-authored plan developed in talks between Washington and Moscow that critics say leans too heavily toward Russian demands.
European allies, while supporting US peace efforts, have been among the most vocal critics. “Ukraine is the only one that can discuss about its territories as a sovereign nation,” Macron said at a joint news conference with Zelenskyy. He also condemned Russia’s ongoing attacks: “At a time when we are talking about peace, Russia continues to kill and destroy.”
Macron’s office later said he and Zelenskyy met with leaders from Britain, Germany, Poland, Italy, Norway and the Netherlands, as well as EU officials Antonio Costa and Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
