European leaders have pushed back against parts of the U.S.-led Ukraine peace plan, demanding full involvement in negotiations as talks continue. A senior European diplomat told Fox News Digital that Europe would not accept a U.S.-driven agreement without full European involvement. The diplomat emphasized, “No negotiations about Ukraine without Ukrainians. No negotiations about Europe’s security without Europeans,” highlighting the necessity of including European voices in the process.
Some of the European concerns came a day after Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the U.S. and Ukraine made “substantial” progress on an “updated and refined peace framework.” While Rubio acknowledged unresolved issues, he stated that matters involving the EU and NATO would be addressed on a “separate track.” Negotiators from the U.S., Ukraine, and major European states are expected to continue discussions throughout the week.
The European official called the American plan “a basis that requires further work,” stressing that “the first of these conditions must be the implementation of a ceasefire along the line of contact.” According to the diplomat, France and the United Kingdom will convene a Coalition of Volunteers meeting on Tuesday to coordinate Europe’s position.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned at the Group of 20 summit in South Africa that Europe cannot be cut out of any settlement. “Wars cannot be ended by major powers over the heads of the countries affected,” he said, noting that “we are still quite a way from a good outcome for everyone.” French President Emmanuel Macron echoed these concerns, stating that the U.S. plan “has not been negotiated with the Europeans,” even though it contains “many provisions that concern Europeans directly.” He pointed to proposed limits on Ukraine’s military capacity as “limitations on the size of the Ukrainian army — in other words, on its own sovereignty.” Macron emphasized that the plan is “only a basis for work,” and that the process should resume, “just as we did last summer.”
Finland’s President Alexander Stubb wrote on X that NATO will assert control over issues within their remit, stating, “It is clear that Europe and NATO decide on matters concerning them.” Amid the friction, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told “Fox & Friends” that the U.S. effort still contained constructive elements, noting that “some elements had to be changed, but there was also good stuff in the plan.” Rutte praised President Trump’s team for “working extremely hard to get this war solved” with the goal of “a durable and lasting peace in Ukraine, a sovereign nation.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reinforced Kyiv’s red lines in an address to Sweden’s parliament, rejecting territorial concessions and stating, “The aggressor must pay fully for the war he started.” Zelenskyy rejected Putin’s demands for legal recognition of Russia’s annexed territories. Russia, however, has dismissed European ideas as “not constructive,” according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, as reported by Reuters.