British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will urge around 25 world leaders on Saturday to mount pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to accept the Ukraine ceasefire.
Starmer hopes Saturday’s video call will see the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ come up with firm commitments of help for Ukraine in the run-up to any peace agreement and after that to ensure the nation’s security.
The meeting will be choreographed to show wide support for Ukraine from Western nations, including Europe, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Starmer will be seeking offers of logistical, financial or military support for Kyiv to put it in a strong position for talks.
Saturday’s video call builds on a flurry of diplomacy between European and other Western countries to find ways to help Ukraine after U.S. President Donald Trump upended Washington’s supportive approach and launched peace talks with Russia.
Starmer has said Britain could send peacekeepers to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire deal, but has called on Washington to offer a security ‘backstop’ to those forces, a measure he believes is essential to deter Putin from attacking again.
“If Russia finally comes to the table, then we must be ready to monitor a ceasefire to ensure it is a serious, and enduring peace. If they don’t, then we need to strain every sinew to ramp up economic pressure on Russia to secure an end to this war,” Starmer said in a statement before the video meeting.
“My message to the Kremlin could not be clearer: stop the barbaric attacks on Ukraine, once and for all, and agree to a ceasefire now. Until then we will keep working around the clock to deliver peace.”
He accused Putin of trying to delay the end of fighting, saying the Russian leader was demanding “pointless conditions” and “a painstaking study before a ceasefire can take place”.
On Thursday, Putin said Russia supported a U.S. proposal for a ceasefire in principle but that fighting could not be paused until a number of conditions were met.
He has said he wants Ukraine to drop its ambitions to join NATO, Russia to control the entirety of the four Ukrainian regions it has claimed as its own, and the size of the Ukrainian army to be limited – demands rejected by Kyiv.
(With inputs from Reuters)
