Officials from the Donald Trump administration and from Vladimir Putin’s delegation are meeting in Riyadh today for talks aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The war-hit nation has said that no peace deal can be made on its behalf in the talks, to which Kyiv was not invited. European nations have also been eliminated in a shock process by the Trump administration.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has said he will also travel to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday but that his trip was unrelated to the US-Russia talks.
Just hours before the controversial meeting began, Russia launched another mass overnight drone attack using 176 drones. A mother and her two children were injured and 38 civilian apartments evacuated in the central city of Dolynska, Ukrainian officials reported.
It came after Sir Keir Starmer demanded that the Trump administration provide a “backstop” to deter Russia from attacking Ukraine again after he attended an emergency meeting of European leaders in Paris, and vowed to send British troops to Ukraine to enforce a peace deal with Russia if necessary.
Key Points
- Russia confirms talks in Saudi Arabia today, lays down its demands
- Moscow launches mass drone attack after another heavy day of fighting in Ukraine
- Starmer demands US provides 'backstop' to deter Russia from attacking Ukraine
- Zelensky says Ukraine will not take part in US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia
- More than 46,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed in Putin's war, says Zelensky
UK defence secretary insists positive change is under way
09:44
,
Andy Gregory
The UK’s defence secretary has insisted that the new Labour government is delivering on bringing the change promised ahead of the general election.
“In the middle of everything else last week, the new defence secretary Pete Hegseth from the US and I made time to discuss the aims we share on defence reform.
“Our new government was elected on a mandate in one word: change. We govern on an instruction in one word: delivery. And as a new government we’re delivering for defence over this first seven months.
“We’ve stepped up and speeded up support for Ukraine. We’ve increased defence spending this year by nearly £3bn and will set a path to spending 2.5 per cent of GDP in the spring. We’ve launched a new defence-industrial strategy, we’ve secured a deal to buy back 36,000 military homes to improve conditions for personnel.
“We’ve given the men and women of our armed forces the biggest pay increase in 20 years. We signed the landmark Trinity House agreement with Germany, and we’ve already progressed the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill through the Commons to give a strong independent voice to improve service life.
“We have within the MoD two major change programmes – both launched within the first month of government. One – the strategic defence review. Two – our defence reform programme. Each is essential for the other.”
Coming weeks will determine fate of global security for a generation to come, warns UK defence secretary
09:39
,
Andy Gregory
Britain’s defence secretary has warned that the coming weeks will determine not only the outcome of the Ukraine war but “the security of our world for a generation to come”.
John Healey told an Institute for Government event: “The pace of the geopolitical change ... that we’re seeing right now confirms what I would argue is the need for change within defence.”
He added: “The decisions that we make right now over the coming weeks will not only define the outcome of the conflict in Ukraine, but the security of our world for a generation to come.
“And the nature of government means dealing with these challenges. But in my view, the test of political leadership isn’t just about managing the immediate, it’s also about reforming for the future.
“We’re in a new of threat, and that demands a new era for defence.”
UK defence secretary John Healey arrives for discussion on bolstering armed forces
09:30
,
Andy Gregory
Britain’s defence secretary John Healey has arrived at an Institute for Government event in which he will discuss efforts to reform the UK’s armed forces in the face of a rapidly shifting Western security landscape.
We’ll be bringing you live updates from the event, which is due to start imminently.
Readers criticise Donald Trump’s ‘simplistic’ plan for peace in Ukraine
09:26
,
Andy Gregory
We've been asking for your opinions on Donald Trump's efforts to negotiate peace in Ukraine directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Many readers shared concerns that Trump’s plan is too simplistic, with several warning that leaving Kyiv out of the talks and pushing Nato aside could weaken Ukraine and encourage Putin to take more land.
They argued that Trump’s approach focuses on quick deals instead of long-term peace and could hurt international support for Ukraine.
Some also criticised Trump for putting his own goals above global security. They stressed that any peace deal should protect Ukraine’s independence and Europe’s safety.
Read the full debate and get involved in the conversation here.
Why is Saudi Arabia hosting Trump’s Ukraine peace talks and who is attending?
09:25
,
Andy Gregory
Russia’s war in Ukraine has reached a sudden critical stage this week as talks begin between political leaders across the globe to decide on the future of the conflict.
My colleague Albert Toth has this rundown of what to expect from the various talks being held on Ukraine’s future:
What is being discussed during US-Russian talks in Riyadh?
09:11
,
Andy Gregory
The meeting of the delegation led by US secretary of state Marco Rubio and Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov marks the first direct contact between Moscow and Washington officials since prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Mr Rubio’s officials have sought to describe the meeting today as an initial step to establish whether Russia may be serious about engaging in talks to end the war, while stressing that no decisions on Ukraine’s future would be taken without Kyiv’s involvement – as Ukraine is shut out of Tuesday’s talks.
However, the Kremlin has appeared to go further, describing the talks as being aimed at normalising US-Russian relations, in a signal that it may hope for Mr Trump’s administration to ease some of the pressure levied against Moscow in response to Ukraine’s war.
Moscow has also said that the talks could pave the way for a face-to-face meeting between Mr Trump and Mr Putin “very soon”, after US president shocked his Western allies with a surprise three-hour phone call with Mr Putin in which he appeared to discuss handing major concessions to the Russian president over Ukraine.
While Mr Rubio has previously suggested that Ukraine must concede territory to Russia as part of a negotiated settlement, US national security adviser Michael Waltz – who is also part of the delegation – has recently stressed that Moscow must not be able to claim a victory in Ukraine.
In a piece for The Economist in November, Mr Waltz suggested that Washington could either offer to ease sanctions on Moscow in order to bring Mr Putin to the table – or else threaten increased economic pressure and military assistance to Kyiv.
Russia launches huge overnight drone strike after another heavy day of fighting on front line
08:53
,
Andy Gregory
Russia has launched a huge overnight drone strike on Ukraine, as Kyiv’s military reported another intense 24 hours of fighting along the front line.
The Ukrainian military said that Russia launched 176 drones during an overnight attack, 103 of which were shot down and 67 of which did not reach their targets – likely as a result of electronic jamming.
A mother and her two children were injured in a drone strike on the central Ukrainian city of Dolynska, which forced the evacuation of residents from 38 flats after their apartment building was damaged, regional officials said.
On the front line, Ukraine’s military reported another intense day of fighting, with a total of 139 combat clashes against Vladimir Putin’s troops, among whom they claimed to have inflicted 1,170 casualties.
Ukrainian military chiefs also claimed to have repelled 55 Russian attacks in the direction of Povrovsk, the Ukrainian-held Donetsk city at the heart of Moscow’s current war effort.
'Entirely right' for Starmer to say UK could send peacekeeping force, minister says
08:37
,
Andy Gregory
It is entirely right for Sir Keir Starmer to say that Britain would consider being part of peacekeeping efforts in Ukraine, the Transport Secretary has said.
Asked if she was in support of putting British troops on the ground in Ukraine, Heidi Alexander told Sky News: “I support the UK playing its role in creating an enduring and lasting peace, and I think that the prime minister is entirely right to say that we would consider all options.
“If that was ... British troops being part of an international peacekeeping force backed up by support from the US, then I don’t think we should be ruling that out at this stage, but we’re quite a long way away from any specific decisions being taken.
“There isn't a peace agreement at the moment, but also clear that there can't be any decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine being at the table as well.”
Ceasefire cannot be forced upon Ukraine, warns Kyiv government adviser
08:32
,
Andy Gregory
A Ukrainian government adviser has warned that no peace agreement or ceasefire “can be forced upon Ukraine”.
Yuriy Sak, an adviser to Ukraine's minister of strategic industries, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “It's not an unhappy day for us, because we fully understand that this negotiating process is only beginning, and it will be a very complex and nuanced negotiating process.
“We have made it very clear and everybody agrees – I mean everybody, the USA agree, our European partners agree – that this will not be decided without Ukraine being at the table, and no peace agreement or ceasefire, even, agreement can be forced upon Ukraine.
“We were not invited. We understand that the US and Russia will meet today at the same time our president is meeting with Mr Erdogan in Turkey.”
Mr Sak added: “Our European partners have confirmed that they will stand with Ukraine regardless of the position of the USA. Look, at the end of the day, I believe that all the rhetoric aside the US and the White House administration understand very well that standing with Ukraine is in their national interest as well.”
Ukraine's military says Russia launched 176 drones during overnight attack
08:18
,
Arpan Rai
The Ukrainian military said that Russia launched 176 drones during an overnight attack.
Ukraine's air force shot down 103 of the drones and 67 did not reach their targets, probably due to electronic countermeasures.
The military did not specify what happened to the remaining six drones.
Photos: US-Russia bilateral talks begin in Riyadh
08:02
,
Arpan Rai
US-Russian talks are now under way in Riyadh, marking their first such meeting since prior to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Donald Trump’s secretary of state Marco Rubio is leading the US delegation, while Mr Putin’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov were leading the Russian delegation.
US and Russia begin peace talks in Saudi Arabia as Ukraine remains sidelined
07:46
,
Arpan Rai
Photos: Russia's Lavrov in Riyadh for talks with US
07:39
,
Arpan Rai
Russian drone attacks injure mother, two children in Ukraine
06:57
,
Arpan Rai
A Russian overnight drone attack on the city of Dolynska in central Ukraine injured a mother and her two children and forced the evacuation of people from 38 flats after their apartment building was damaged, a regional official said today.
"A difficult night for the Kirovohrad region," Andriy Raikovych, governor of the Kirovohrad region said in a post on the Telegram messaging app. "An enemy drone hit a high-rise building in Dolynska."
The mother and one of the children were hospitalised, Raikovych added.
He posted photos of flames bursting out of windows of a high-storey apartment building.
Zelensky claims more than 46,000 Ukrainian troops killed defending against Russian invasion
06:39
,
Arpan Rai
More than 46,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed defending against Russia’s full-scale invasion which began in February 2022, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Mr Zelensky also revealed that “tens of thousands” of Ukrainian troops were missing in action or being held in Russian captivity, as the grinding war of attrition nears its three-year anniversary.
The figures released by the Ukrainian president differ from the estimates of Kyiv’s allies. Last year, The Economist reported anonymous US officials as estimating that at least 70,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died and up to 120,000 wounded. In October, another US official estimated to the New York Times that more than 57,500 had been killed and 250,000 wounded.
The Russian economy is on the brink of collapse and Putin knows it
06:25
,
Arpan Rai
How close is Russia’s economy to collapse? As Donald Trump’s negotiators open direct talks with the Kremlin, Kyiv’s European allies hope that a final push on sanctions against Russia could be Ukraine’s last – and best – hope of victory. Time is running out before Ukraine stands to lose all the territory currently held by Russia.
Almost three years ago to the day, Putin intended his full-scale invasion of Ukraine to be a three-day operation that would force regime change in Kyiv. Neither Putin nor his military or economic planners anticipated a grinding war that now soaks up more than 40 per cent of Kremlin spending.
Nor did they expect Europe to impose serious sanctions, and even less did they anticipate the destruction of three of the four Gazprom gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea that before the war supplied more than 30 per cent of Europe’s gas.
No one will impose peace deal on Zelensky, says Trump's Ukraine envoy
05:56
,
Arpan Rai
Donald Trump's Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg has said that no one would impose a peace deal on Kyiv and that questions about whether Washington would provide guarantees for any future European peacekeepers would be addressed later.
Mr Kellogg, who said he would visit Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv this week, told reporters at Nato headquarters in Brussels that nobody would impose a deal "on an elected leader of a sovereign nation".
Senior US officials including secretary of state Marco Rubio – but not Mr Kellogg – are due to meet today with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov for talks focused on ending the war in Ukraine and on Russia-US ties.
He also reiterated that he was speaking with European allies, who have been pushing to be included in negotiations, but that in his view it was not feasible to have everyone sitting at the table.
Watch: Navalny’s widow marks anniversary of his death with call for ‘free’ Russia
04:30
,
Andy Gregory
Opinion | Britain is in no position to act as Ukraine's peacekeeper
04:00
,
Andy Gregory
Historian Mark Almond writes:
Since the Munich Security Conference broke up in disarray, Keir Starmer has been in crisis-management mode. The prime minister has been trying to get transatlantic minds focused back on Russia’s war in Ukraine, rather than the war of words between Washington and Europe.
By making a firm offer of British troops to patrol a ceasefire line, Starmer hopes to mollify Donald Trump’s dismissive attitude to underperforming Nato allies and put Britain at the heart of any Allied peace mission. The big question for us is whether our armed forces are numerous and well equipped enough to provide a serious contingent to any peacekeeping force along the ceasefire line.
Starmer might want to charm Trump back into the Nato corral, but he has no obvious policy for dealing with Vladimir Putin – apart from repeating the mantras of British backing for Ukraine’s war effort.
Britain’s record as a peacekeeper in recent years has been poor. Remember the confident predictions that the army would be able to carry out its peacekeeping role in Afghanistan’s Helman province “without a shot being fired”!
Those worst-case scenarios shouldn’t veto action – but refusing to plan with them in mind is an invitation to disaster or at least, as in Afghanistan, humiliating retreat.
Read the full article here:
European leaders warn against Ukraine ceasefire without peace deal, official says
03:45
,
Arpan Rai
A group of European leaders have agreed that it would be dangerous to conclude a ceasefire without a peace agreement as they offered the war-hit nation security guarantees.
"We are ready to provide security guarantees, with modalities to be examined with each party, depending on the level of American support," an official said, summarising the results of the Paris meeting.
The meeting was called by French president Emmanuel Macron after US president Donald Trump arranged bilateral peace talks with Russia, excluding European allies and Ukraine from negotiations that are due to begin in Saudi Arabia today.
The meeting saw British prime minister Keir Starmer, German chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, Polish prime minister Donald Tusk and Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez in attendance.
Also taking part were Dutch prime minister Dick Schoof, Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen, Nato secretary general Mark Rutte, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president Antonio Costa.
"We agree with president Trump on a 'peace through strength' approach," the EU official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"We believe it is dangerous to conclude a ceasefire without a peace agreement at the same time," the official added.
Russia confirms talks in Saudi Arabia today, lays down its demands
03:30
,
Arpan Rai
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the talks today with American counterparts today will be primarily focused on "restoring the entire range of US-Russian relations, as well as preparing possible talks on the Ukrainian settlement and organising a meeting of the two presidents."
State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the meeting is aimed at determining how serious the Russians are about wanting peace and whether detailed negotiations can be started.
"I think the goal, obviously, for everyone is to determine if this is something that can move forward," she told reporters traveling with Rubio in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ms Bruce said that even though Ukraine would not be at the table for today’s talks, actual peace negotiations would only take place with Ukraine's involvement.
Kyiv's participation in any peace talks was a bedrock of US policy under Trump's predecessor, Joe Biden.
British aid worker who lost limbs in Ukraine may have to fund his own prosthetics
03:30
,
Andy Gregory
A British aid worker who lost his arm and leg in an attack on Ukraine may have to fund his own prosthetics after he was hit by a drone while completing a civilian evacuation on the frontline.
Edward “Eddy” Scott works for Base UA, which provides shelter and helps evacuate people in combat zones, and was seriously injured when the team’s armoured vehicle was hit in Pokrovsk in January. He had to have his left arm and leg amputated.
Once the 28-year-old from Dorset leaves initial care, he will go to a post-surgical rehabilitation centre, where he will get plastic surgery to reshape his stumps and have prosthetics fitted.
Base UA said it remains “up in the air” about how these prosthetics would be funded, as the serious nature of Mr Scott’s injuries means he may require extremely high-quality equipment which is not provided as standard.
Bryony Gooch reports:
More than 46,000 Ukrainian troops killed defending against Russian invasion, says Zelensky
03:15
,
Andy Gregory
More than 46,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed defending against Russia’s full-scale invasion which began in February 2022, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Mr Zelensky also revealed that “tens of thousands” of Ukrainian troops were missing in action or being held in Russian captivity, as the grinding war of attrition nears its three-year anniversary.
The figures released by the Ukrainian president differ from the estimates of Kyiv’s allies. Last year, The Economist reported anonymous US officials as estimating that at least 70,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died and up to 120,000 wounded. In October, another US official estimated to the New York Times that more than 57,500 had been killed and 250,000 wounded.
Alex Croft reports:
Russia, US hold talks on ending Ukraine war without Kyiv
03:06
,
Arpan Rai
Senior American and Russian officials, including the countries' top diplomats, will hold talks today on improving their ties and negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine, officials said.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and Vladimir Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov arrived in the Saudi capital yesterday, according to Russian state TV.
Mr Ushakov said the talks would be "purely bilateral" and would not include Ukrainian officials.
The US delegation, he said, is made up of "serious people" but said Russia "came with a serious approach too."
It is important, Mr Ushakov said, "to start the real normalization of relations" between Russia and the US.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz and special envoy Steve Witkoff will meet the Russian delegation, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
This would be the most significant meeting between the sides since Moscow's full-scale invasion of its neighbour nearly three years ago.
Trump's tariffs expose Ukraine's steel industry to another war
03:00
,
Andy Gregory
The Zaporizhstal Iron and Steelworks, one of Ukraine’s largest steel plants, lies in the country’s industrial east, where Russia's 3-year invasion of its neighbor threatens to throttle production at any moment. Daily battles unfold along a front line 40 kilometers (25 miles) away as the plant churns out materials for military equipment and for foreign manufacturers to use in cars, appliances, and construction.
“Morale is not as high as it was before. We are pretty tired here,” plant supervisor Serhii Zhyvotchenko said, reflecting on the hardships. “But there is no way to go back; the only way is forward.”
Last week, though, a second war came to the doorstep of the hulking factory complex: the possible trade war that U.S. President Donald Trump has provoked since returning to office four weeks ago. Trump imposed tariffs of at least 25% on all imported steel and aluminum, a decision that could hurt an essential sector of Ukraine's battered economy.
Ukrainian government officials and business leaders were shocked by Trump’s Feb. 10 executive order, which underscored Ukraine's growing precarity in relation to its most important Western ally. The president maintains that imposing a variety of tariffs will level the playing field in international trade and make U.S. factories more competitive.
Samya Kullab reports:
What has Sweden said about sending peacekeeper forces to Ukraine?
02:00
,
Andy Gregory
Ahead of talks on Monday in Paris – and in the wake of Sir Keir Starmer’s call that Britain is prepared to send troops to Ukraine to oversee a peace deal – Sweden’s prime minister said: "There needs to be a very clear mandate for those forces and I don't think we can see that until we have come further in those negotiations.
“But Sweden, we are normally a part of strengthening security in our part of the world, so I foresee us to be a part of that this time as well."
Ukraine's Zelensky to visit Turkey on Tuesday, Ankara says
01:00
,
Andy Gregory
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit Turkey on Tuesday upon the invitation of President Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Presidency's communications director said on Monday.
In a statement on X, Fahrettin Altun said Zelensky and Erdogan will discuss ways to improve cooperation and bilateral ties, the latest developments in Ukraine as well as regional and global issues.
Zelensky's will coincide with talks between Russia and the United States on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia, aimed at ending the war in Ukraine and restoring broader Russia-US ties.
Will the US leave Nato?
Monday 17 February 2025 23:59
,
Andy Gregory
After US defence secretary Pete Hegseth told Western allies on Wednesday that European security is no longer an American priority, concern over the Trump administration’s commitment to Nato is higher than ever.
Donald Trump recently suggested the US would not protect Nato allies who did not spend enough on defence, reportedly telling allies he would “encourage” Russia to attack any Nato member that failed to meet the alliance's target of 2 per cent of their GDP.
The future of the Western military alliance, which was formed after the Second World War to guarantee security against the Soviet Union, has never faced bigger questions.
The US is the most powerful member of Nato, spending far more on defence than any other ally and outweighing allies in its military muscle.
As a result, the US calls the shots. But those close to the Trump administration have long questioned how much Nato membership serves in America’s interest, with European allies ostensibly failing to spend as much as they should on defence.
Earlier this week, former US National Security Advisor John Bolton told Tom Swarbrick on LBC that it is “highly probable that Trump will try and withdraw the United States from Nato”.
No one can say for sure whether a president as unpredictable as Trump will pull the US out of Nato - but he will certainly make the US a far more prickly member of the alliance than it was under former presidents.
Zelensky says he spoke to France's Macron about security guarantees for Ukraine
Monday 17 February 2025 23:46
,
Jabed Ahmed
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he talked with French President Emmanuel Macron about security guarantees and achieving a lasting peace in Ukraine.
"We share a common vision: security guarantees must be robust and reliable," Zelenskiy said on X.
"Any other decision without such guarantees — such as a fragile ceasefire — would only serve as another deception by Russia and a prelude to a new Russian war against Ukraine or other European nations."
Russia says that talks on Ukraine in Riyadh strictly bilateral, RIA reports
Monday 17 February 2025 23:27
,
Jabed Ahmed
Yuri Ushakov, Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy adviser, said upon arrival in the Saudi capital of Riyadh that talks on Ukraine will be strictly bilateral, Russia's RIA state news agency reported.
"We came to negotiate with American colleagues," RIA cited Ushakov as saying. "These are bilateral talks, purely bilateral. There can be no trilateral talks in Riyadh."
Sending troops to Ukraine 'could require permanent uplift in UK defence spending'
Monday 17 February 2025 23:00
,
Andy Gregory
Asked about the implications of Sir Keir Starmer’s plans to send troops to Ukraine, IFS associate director Ben Zaranko told The Independent it could lead to a structural need for a permanent increase in defence spending.
“It would require spending cuts elsewhere, tax rises, or some combination of the two,” he said.
He added: “Meeting the pressures of an ageing population on the NHS while simultaneously ramping up defence expenditure, in an era of stagnant growth and elevated interest rates, would be an epochal challenge – and certainly not one that could be met while sticking to the letter of Labour’s manifesto promises.”
Our political correspondents Archie Mitchell and Millie Cooke have more details in this report.
European leaders warn against Ukraine ceasefire without peace deal, official says
Monday 17 February 2025 22:50
,
Jabed Ahmed
A group of European leaders agreed at a meeting in Paris on Monday they were ready to give Ukraine security guarantees, but it would be dangerous to conclude a ceasefire without a peace agreement at the same time, a European Union official said.
"We are ready to provide security guarantees, with modalities to be examined with each party, depending on the level of American support," said the official, summarising the results of the Paris meeting.
Full report | Starmer throws down gauntlet to Trump as PM says US must provide ‘backstop’ to deter Russia
Monday 17 February 2025 22:44
,
Jabed Ahmed
Trump spoke to Macron about Ukraine, White House says
Monday 17 February 2025 22:29
,
Jabed Ahmed
US President Donald Trump spoke to his French counterpart Emmanual Macron about Ukraine and the meeting in Saudi Arabia between US and Russian officials, a White House official has said.
“Today President Donald J. Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron had a friendly call,”a White House official said.
“The leaders talked about the Ukraine War, the upcoming meeting of European nations tomorrow, and the talks in Saudi Arabia between U.S. and Russian officials. The call lasted approximately 30 minutes."
Ex-Royal Navy chief urges vast increase in defence spending
Monday 17 February 2025 22:00
,
Andy Gregory
Lord West of Spithead, who headed the Royal Navy from 2002 to 2006, has told The Independent that Britain should be spending 4 per cent of GDP on defence.
Successive governments have “betrayed the British people about defence spending” and have “lied about the capabilities of our military”, the former Navy chief warned.
He said that Britain “absolutely needs to spend more”, adding: “I have no doubt whatsoever. And I think we're being very silly as a nation not doing that."
European leaders' comments after emergency Ukraine talks in Paris
Monday 17 February 2025 21:26
,
Jabed Ahmed
On the idea of deploying European peacekeepers, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was "completely premature and completely the wrong time to have this discussion now ... I want to say that quite frankly, people are talking over Ukraine's head, about the outcome of peace talks that have not taken place and to which Ukraine has not said yes."
On defense spending, Scholz said: "If European states want to spend more (than 2%) on defense, Germany is supportive that this expenditure is not taken into account in European budget deficit calculations."
Polish PM Donald Tusk said: "Transatlantic relations and our friendship with the United States are at a new stage and we all see that. No one should probably be surprised that today this meeting also confirmed that our European partners realise that the time has come for a much greater ability for Europe to defend itself."
Tusk also said there was "a very important confirmation ... that defense spending will no longer be treated as excessive spending, so we will not be at risk of the excessive deficit procedure and all its unpleasant consequences."
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: "Today in Paris we reaffirmed that Ukraine deserves peace through strength. Peace respectful of its independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, with strong security guarantees. Europe carries its full share of the military assistance to Ukraine. At the same time we need a surge in defense in Europe."
Watch: Trump ex-security official accuses Europe of ‘throwing temper tantrum’
Monday 17 February 2025 21:00
,
Andy Gregory
Watch | Starmer speaks in Paris after emergency talks with European leaders
Monday 17 February 2025 20:49
,
Jabed Ahmed
Full report | Europe split over Starmer pledge to send troops to Ukraine
Monday 17 February 2025 20:36
,
Jabed Ahmed
Our political correspondent Millie Cooke reports:
