Donald Trump has attacked Ukrainian and European leaders as they hold talks in Geneva over a US peace plan that has rattled the transatlantic alliance and triggered confusion about Washington’s position.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday the US president declined to blame Russia for the conflict in Ukraine, instead targeting his rage at Kyiv and top US allies in Europe for failing to reach a truce — a key foreign policy goal for his second term in the White House.
“UKRAINE ‘LEADERSHIP’ HAS EXPRESSED ZERO GRATITUDE FOR OUR EFFORTS AND EUROPE CONTINUES TO BUY OIL FROM RUSSIA,” Trump said.
“THE USA CONTINUES TO SELL MASSIVE $AMOUNTS OF WEAPONS TO NATO, FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UKRAINE.”
In a statement published online after Trump’s remarks, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “The leadership of the United States is important, we are grateful for everything that America and President Trump are doing for security, and we keep working as constructively as possible.”
The White House’s pressure on Ukraine and its allies to agree to a settlement with Moscow has triggered concern in European capitals, where officials are trying to ascertain whether the US is embracing Russia’s goals or seeking a more balanced negotiation.
The confusion was compounded late on Saturday when, in a meeting with US senators, secretary of state Marco Rubio reportedly distanced himself from the 28-point peace plan the US had floated, before insisting just hours later that Washington was behind it.
One European official described the situation within the Trump administration as “messy”.
The talks in Geneva involve national security advisers from France, Germany, the UK and the EU alongside their US and Ukrainian counterparts, including Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff, one of the authors of the plan, and US army secretary Daniel Driscoll, a close ally of JD Vance, the US vice-president.
They met Ukraine’s delegation — led by Andriy Yermak, the head of Zelenskyy’s office, and the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, Rustem Umerov — before being joined by European representatives.
Yermak posted on social media that the first session of talks had concluded, calling it “very productive” and saying they “made very good progress and are moving forward to a just and lasting peace”. He said a second meeting would take place soon “where we will continue to work on joint proposals with the engagement of our European partners”.
“Final decisions will be taken by our presidents,” he added.
Driscoll was dispatched to Kyiv earlier this week to press the plan on Zelenskyy. He told EU and Nato officials in Kyiv it must be signed by Thursday and there was little room for negotiation.
But Trump on Saturday said the plan was not America’s “final offer” to end the conflict, adding to the confusion.
The hastily arranged Geneva talks come after Kyiv’s European allies mounted a rearguard effort to slow down US efforts to force the plan on Ukraine. European leaders and their counterparts from Japan and Canada on Saturday described the text as a “draft . . . which will require additional work”.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that European officials in Geneva were working on the plan to make it “a document that Ukraine can accept” and that could be used in negotiations with Russia, but voiced scepticism that a deal could be reached by Thursday.
“I’m not yet convinced that the solution President Trump wants will be reached in the next few days,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Johannesburg. “We are still very far from that.”
Merz said that he himself had made a proposal that “falls short of a complete solution” but could serve as a “first step” that could be agreed by Thursday. He declined to provide further details while discussions in Geneva were ongoing.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said: “Any credible and sustainable peace plan should first and foremost stop the killing and end the war, while not sowing the seeds for a future conflict.”
Von der Leyen, whose chief of staff is participating in the Geneva talks, said three elements were critical.
“First, borders cannot be changed by force. Second, as a sovereign nation there cannot be limitations on Ukraine’s armed forces [and] third, the centrality of the European Union in securing peace for Ukraine must be fully reflected,” she said.
While stressing that they did not want to present an alternative plan to the US, European officials have suggested amendments, two people briefed on the preparations said.
The US plan would cross several long-standing Ukrainian red lines including handing over the rest of Donetsk province, which Russia has been unable to seize since it began its offensive there in 2014.
One European official said there were fears that Trump could simply withdraw US support from Ukraine in frustration, leaving Zelenskyy and his country dangerously exposed. “That’s a scenario we are obviously planning for,” they said.
European diplomats expect further meetings this week between France, Germany and the UK. Other possible participants could include leaders of Poland, Finland and Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte. “We are trying to come up with something that flies as a counter-offer,” the European diplomat said.
US lawmakers from both parties have been outspoken in their criticism of the proposed deal.
“Vladimir Putin is a murderer, a rapist and an assassin and we should not do anything that makes him feel like he has a win here,” said Republican senator Thom Tillis, speaking at the Halifax International Security Forum. “Any agreement has to be an agreement that the people of Ukraine want.”
Additional reporting by Laura Pitel in Berlin
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