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The European Union said Friday that “a lot of work” was still needed to reach a peace agreement in Ukraine and stressed that decisions affecting European security must be made by the bloc itself, after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested a broader deal with Russia involving “all of Europe.”
Trump said Thursday that he expected a “very big” agreement with Russia covering not only the war in Ukraine but wider European security issues.
“We all wish that we will have a peace deal soon. We are all working in that regard,” EU spokesperson Paula Pinho said.
“But there is a lot of work that needs to go into it, and above all, there needs to be a willingness on the side of the one who first started the war.”
Pinho added: “It’s obviously up to the European Union to decide on matters which affect its security.”
The comments came ahead of U.S.-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi next week.
A NATO spokesperson said allies were working toward a “just and sustainable” end to the war following talks in Brussels on Thursday involving U.S., Ukrainian, European and NATO officials.
Jared Kushner, Trump’s envoy and son-in-law, participated by video and said Washington was working on “a broader European security architecture that can help establish the conditions for lasting peace.”
He said the goal was to develop practical arrangements addressing the security concerns of all sides.
Kushner also said any agreement must respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independent decision-making of every country, while NATO would remain central to European collective defense.
European countries have been seeking a larger role in U.S.-led efforts to end the war.
Kushner said Washington would consult closely with European partners on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi talks and, if progress was made, seek to move toward a broader multilateral format involving them directly.
Before launching the war in Ukraine in 2022, Russia demanded that NATO withdraw troops from eastern Europe as part of proposed changes to the continent’s security arrangements. NATO rejected the demand.
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