Paris (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – French President Emmanuel Macron suggested Geneva could host a peace meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who may meet after they separately met with US President Donald Trump.
Macron referred to the upcoming Zelensky-Putin summit after joining fellow European leaders for a high-stakes meeting with the Ukrainian president at the White House on Monday, saying it would occur in Europe.
Why did Macron suggest Geneva as the summit host city?
Macron said in a broadcast with French news channel LCI:
“It will be (hosted by) a neutral country, maybe Switzerland — I’m pushing for Geneva — or another country.”
“The last time there were bilateral talks, they were in Istanbul,”
He said, in reference to three rounds of lower-level talks between Russia and Ukraine that took place in Turkey between May and July.
Macron also stated that France and the UK will hold a meeting on Tuesday with other Ukrainian partners to “keep them up to date on what was decided” in the white house regarding security guarantees for Ukraine, which was a key topic during discussions with Trump.
“Right after that, we’ll start concrete work with the Americans. So as of tomorrow (Tuesday), our diplomatic advisers, ministers, chiefs of staff begin work on seeing who’s ready to do what,”
He said. Macron stated that whether Zelensky would be compelled to cede territory to Russia was “up to Ukraine.”
“Ukraine will make the concessions it deems just and right,”
The French president said. But
“let’s be very careful when we talk about legal recognition”,
Macron also said.
“If countries… can say, ‘we can take territory by force’, (that) opens a Pandora’s box.”
What was discussed at the White House meeting on Ukraine?
US President Donald Trump hosted Zelensky and several European leaders on Monday at the White House to explore what a possible conclusion to the Ukraine-Russia conflict would look like. Trump also remarked that he was investigating timeframes where there could be a bilateral meeting of Putin and Zelensky and a trilateral meeting of Putin, Zelensky, and himself.
The leaders were mostly united on the idea of ending the fighting. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz endorsed a ceasefire prior to the start of negotiations, which Trump did not outright support.
Moreover, Security guarantees for Ukraine were discussed, with Trump vaguely indicating these would involve various European nations coordinated with the U.S., though details were not fully defined. Trump also suggested the U.S. would be involved without specifying troop deployments.
