Emmanuel Macron has said Europe wants to secure a lasting peace in Ukraine, as the French president met with United States President Donald Trump at the White House on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
Speaking alongside Trump in the Oval Office on Monday, Macron said the “common objective” was to build “a solid and longstanding peace” in the war-torn country.
“We do share the objective of peace but we are very aware of the necessity to have guarantees and a solid peace in order to stabilise the situation,” the French president told reporters.
“This is a very important moment for Europe,” Macron added.
“I’m here as well after discussions with all my colleagues, to say that Europe is willing to step up to be a stronger partner, to do more in defence and security for its continent, and … to be engaged on trade, economy and investments.”
Macron’s visit to Washington, DC comes amid growing concern in Europe about the future of transatlantic relations as Trump advances his “America First” foreign policy agenda and urges a quick end to the Ukraine war.
The Republican leader’s push to launch negotiations between senior US and Russian diplomats without the participation of Ukrainian or European leaders has raised tensions, with Europe questioning Washington’s commitment to its security.
Trump, who took office on January 20, said on Monday that “a lot of progress has been made” so far on efforts to end the conflict.
“We’ve had some very good talks with Russia,” the US president told reporters.
“We’ve had some very good talks with others, and we’re trying to get the war ended with Russia and Ukraine, and I think we’ve come a long way in a short period of weeks.”
Increased tensions
Macron and Trump met as the US president’s repeated criticisms of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have also shaken Europe.
Last week, Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator” and suggested that Ukraine was to blame for the war, despite Russia launching the invasion of its neighbour in 2022.
He also dismissed the Ukrainian leader’s complaints about Ukraine and Europe not being included in the opening of US-Russia talks, saying Zelenskyy has been negotiating “with no cards, and you get sick of it.”
Macron has tried to coordinate a European response to Washington’s sudden policy shift, hoping to use a bond he fostered with Trump during the US president’s first term, from 2017 to 2021.
The French president earlier said he intended to tell Trump during their talks that it is in the joint interest of Americans and Europeans not to show weakness to Russian President Vladimir Putin during US-led negotiations to end the war.
Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher said European leaders are ultimately not looking for a fast peace deal in Ukraine, but one that will ensure stability for the country.
“There is a concern that Trump wants to race into this [peace deal] and there is a worry that may mean Ukraine’s sovereignty is undermined,” Fisher said.
US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz told reporters on Monday that the two sides “expect to talk quite a bit about the security guarantees that Macron has put on the table”.
“Trump and Macron would also discuss the thorny issue of trade with the European Union, with the US president threatening sweeping tariffs against the bloc,” Waltz said.
European peacekeepers?
In the Oval Office, Macron said Europe was prepared to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, including peacekeepers, in the event of a ceasefire.
Trump said Washington backed the idea of sending European peacekeeping troops. He added that he had raised the concept with Putin and that the Russian president would accept it.
Rachel Rizzo, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center, told Al Jazeera that the meeting between Trump and Macron signalled the potential for real progress on a peace agreement for Ukraine.
The French president “has been pretty forward-leaning for a long time on not just European strategic autonomy and providing more for their own defence, but also on what Europe needs to do for Ukraine”, Rizzo said.
That made the meeting with Trump a promising one, she added.
“It’s heartening to hear Macron saying that Europe would be willing to potentially send peacekeepers, and it’s good also to hear that Trump would be willing to accept that as well.”
