France’s Emmanuel Macron reportedly worked for days to convince the US president-elect to meet the Ukrainian leader in person
French President Emmanuel Macron had to persuade incoming US President Donald Trump to meet Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky during a visit to Paris by the latter two, Axios reported on Sunday, citing sources.
Trump arrived in Paris on Saturday to attend the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral, which was damaged in a fire in 2019. The trip was Trump’s first foreign visit since winning last month’s election. The trilateral meeting between Trump, Macron, and Zelensky took place shortly after the reopening ceremony. A source told Axios that Trump had initially been “reluctant” to meet with Zelensky and made the decision to go ahead with the meeting at the last moment.
According to French media reports, the encounter lasted only about 45 minutes. None of the three men spoke to the press afterwards or revealed any specific details of the meeting.
All three, however, later posted on social media, with Macron saying on X that the meeting was focused on the Ukraine conflict and “common action for peace and security.” Also on X, Zelensky described the talks as “good and productive,” thanking Trump for being “resolute.” He signaled that Kiev, Paris and Washington “want this war to end as soon as possible” and claimed that “peace through strength is possible,” without elaborating on that remark.
Posting on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump called for an “immediate ceasefire and negotiations” between Moscow and Kiev, urging Russian President Vladimir Putin “to act” and signaling that “Zelensky and Ukraine would like to make a deal” with Russia. He did not elaborate further on this comment.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that he could end the Ukraine conflict within a day of returning to the White House, and has criticized the outgoing US administration for spending too much on arming Kiev. According to earlier media reports, he may try to enforce a ‘freeze’ of the conflict along the current battle lines, using US aid to Kiev as leverage.
Moscow has repeatedly said it considers a freeze of the conflict unacceptable. It has insisted that any settlement is only possible if Ukraine withdraws its forces from Russian territory, including the former Ukrainian regions, ensures the rights of its Russian-speaking population and adheres to neutrality.
