At Thursday’s high-level talks in Paris, the United States presented its European allies with a set of proposals to enable peace between Russia and Ukraine, outlining conditions for halting hostilities and easing sanctions on Moscow, contingent on the establishment of a lasting cease-fire.
According to the Élysée—the office of the French president—all the “key components” of a cease-fire, as well as security guarantees, were discussed. One element of the U.S. proposal, the Élysée said, involves effectively freezing the conflict along current frontlines.
“The fact is that a number of territories are currently occupied by Russia, and if the initial objective is to obtain a cease-fire, then it must be based on the current line of contact as it is,” an Élysée official, talking on the condition of anonymity, told The Epoch Times. “We have to start from the realities on the ground.”
However, Kyiv offered a firm rebuttal. In remarks to Le Monde, Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, said the country rejected the idea of any “recognition of Moscow’s occupation of its territories,” calling it a “red line.”
The Élysée characterized the purpose of the meeting as an effort to allow Ukraine to better understand the American proposals. The official said that the next step rests with Kyiv.
“The next step in the process is for Ukraine to share its own demands and its willingness to engage in the follow-up to the negotiations initiated by the Americans with the Russians,” the official said.
French, German, and British officials voiced support for “President Trump’s objective of quickly ending the war in Ukraine,” according to the Élysée. “We agreed on the necessity of a full cease-fire as soon as possible,” the official added.
The French presidency described the gathering as “an excellent exchange which allowed us to converge on what matters most: a solid peace for the benefit of Ukraine, and in doing so, also for the benefit of Europeans.”
Follow-up talks are expected to take place next week in London.
Speaking Friday at Le Bourget Airport near Paris, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised European participants as “very helpful and constructive” during the meeting. He also called for “more specificity” in the next round.
Rubio also issued a warning that the Trump administration may abandon the initiative if no swift progress is made.
“We need to figure out now, within a matter of days, whether this is doable in the short term, because if it’s not, then I think we’re just going to move on,” he said. “We have other priorities to focus on as well.”
Later that day in Washington, President Donald Trump echoed the message, warning that the U.S. could walk away from the talks unless there is rapid progress from Moscow and Kyiv.
“Now, if for some reason, one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we’re just going to say ‘you’re foolish. You are fools, you’re horrible people,’” Trump said. “And we’re going to just take a pass. But hopefully, we won’t have to do that.”
