‘Coalition of the willing’ to discuss outcomes of Trump talks on Ukraine, Starmer to co-host huddle

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will co-host a virtual call of the “coalition of the willing” on Tuesday, following the talks between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“The prime minister will co-chair a virtual meeting of the Coalition of the Willing this morning to update leaders on the outcomes of discussions in Washington and discuss next steps,” the spokesperson told AFP.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s allies met on Tuesday to discuss the outcome of fast-moving talks to end the war with Russia, after Trump’s announcement that he is arranging a meeting between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who was in Washington for the talks on the key issue of long-term security guarantees for Ukraine, said France and Britain would hold a meeting on Tuesday with around 30 of Kyiv’s allies.

The virtual meeting of the so-called “coalition of the willing” would “keep them up to date on what was decided”, Macron told French news channel LCI. “Right after that, we’ll start concrete work with the Americans.”

Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer are co-hosting the meeting, which will “discuss next steps” for Ukraine, a UK government spokesperson told AFP, as Kyiv seeks backing from allies to enforce any peace deal.

Earlier today, the French president said that the “Coalition of the Willing”, a group established by European leaders in February, has now expanded to include 30 countries.

Macron suggested Geneva could host peace talks, but said it was “up to Ukraine” to decide whether to make concessions on territory, including parts of the eastern Donbas region still under its control.

“Putin has rarely honoured his commitments,” he added, calling the Russian leader a “predator, an ogre at our gates” – comments that underscored wider European wariness.

With inputs from agencies