Munich:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday he blocked a Donald Trump-led deal that would give the US access to vast amounts of Ukrainian natural resources as it lacked “security guarantees” for Kyiv and “does not protect us”.

Trump, a businessman leader highly critical of the money Washington has sent to Ukraine to fight Russia’s invasion, has pushed for access to rare earths in Ukraine.

Zelensky’s announcement came a day after Ukrainian officials gave the US a draft of the agreement and three days after Trump called Russia’s Vladimir Putin, with Europe and Kyiv alarmed the pair will try to end the conflict without them.

“The agreement is signed at the ministerial level. But I am the president and I will have an impact on the quality of this document. That is why I did not allow ministers to sign the agreement because it is not ready,” Zelensky told journalist at the Munich Security Conference.

“In my opinion, it does not protect us. It is not ready to protect us, our interests,” he added.

“It must be written out legally correctly, correctly, and it is an investment… If all this is connected with security guarantees. I don’t see this connection in the document yet,” he said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

German chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at the 61st Munich Security Conference on February 15, 2025 in Munich, Germany.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz delivered a strong rebuke on Saturday (February 15, 2025) to U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance’s attack on Europe’s stance toward hate speech and the far right, saying it was not right for others to tell Germany and Europe what to do.

Mr. Vance lambasted European leaders on Friday, the first day of the Munich Security Conference, accusing them of censoring free speech and criticising German mainstream parties’ “firewall” against the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

“That is not appropriate, especially not among friends and allies. We firmly reject that,” Mr. Scholz told the conference on Saturday, adding there were “good reasons” not to work with the AfD.

The anti-immigration party, currently polling at around 20% ahead of Germany’s February 23 national election, has pariah status among other major German parties in a country with a taboo about ultranationalist politics because of its Nazi past.

“Never again fascism, never again racism, never again aggressive war. That is why an overwhelming majority in our country opposes anyone who glorifies or justifies criminal National Socialism,” Mr. Scholz said, referring to the ideology of Adolf Hitler’s 1933-45 Nazi regime.

Mr. Vance met on Friday with the leader of AfD, after endorsing the party as a political partner — a stance Berlin dismissed as unwelcome election interference.

Referring more broadly to Vance’s criticism of Europe’s curtailing of hate speech, which he has likened to censorship, Mr. Scholz said: “Today’s democracies in Germany and Europe are founded on the historic awareness and realisation that democracies can be destroyed by radical anti-democrats.

“And this is why we’ve created institutions that ensure that our democracies can defend themselves against their enemies, and rules that do not restrict or limit our freedom but protect it”, he said.

Munich:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Saturday for the creation of a European army, as he insisted Kyiv and its backers on the continent must be listened to in peace talks with Russia.

Speaking at a gathering of top policymakers in Munich, the Ukrainian leader said that with the return of President Donald Trump to the White House Europe could no longer count on Washington to always have its back.

Trump stunned allies and upended the status quo of US support for Ukraine this week when he announced he would likely soon meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin to start truce talks.

Zelensky’s rallying cry came a day after he met US Vice President JD Vance as Kyiv scrambles to ensure it is not sidelined in Washington’s push to wrap up the three-year war.

“Let’s be honest — now we can’t rule out the possibility that America might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it,” Zelensky said.

“I really believe that time has come. The Armed Forces of Europe must be created.”

The push for a joint continental force has been mooted for years without gaining traction and Zelensky’s intervention seems unlikely to shift the balance.

In the short-term, the priority for Kyiv remains ensuring its voice is heard at any peace talks involving Russia and that it doesn’t get a bad deal.

“Ukraine will never accept deals made behind our backs without our involvement,” Zelensky said in a speech.

“No decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine. No decisions about Europe without Europe.”

Zelensky cautioned Putin would seek to use Trump as a “prop in his own performance”, possibly by trying to get him to Moscow for Russia’s WWII victory parade in May.

Zelensky is pushing for “security guarantees” from both the United States and Europe to ensure that any peace deal does not allow Moscow just to restart the war later.

“Putin cannot offer real security guarantees, not just because he is a liar but because Russia in its current state needs war to hold power together,” he said.

The Ukrainian leader said forceful sanctions on Russia and building up Ukraine’s military could help secure peace, and said he was “open” to eventually having European peacekeepers.

‘No time to lose’ 

European leaders backed up Zelensky’s call to action and for their continent to play a key role.

“There will only be peace if Ukraine’s sovereignty is secured,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told the Munich Security Conference.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk pressed Europe to establish its own stances on Ukraine and security as the United States sows doubts about its commitment to Europe.

“Europe urgently needs its own plan of action concerning Ukraine and our security, or else other global players will decide about our future,” Tusk said.

“This plan must be prepared now. There’s no time to lose.”

NATO boss Mark Rutte said that leaders in Europe were “now getting into the concrete planning phase” of possible security guarantees.

US officials have said that Ukraine will not be left in the cold after three years of battling Russia’s invasion.

Vance said after his sit-down with Zelensky that Washington was looking for a “durable, lasting peace” that would not lead to further bloodshed in coming years.

Rare earths deal? 

But US officials have sent mixed messages over Washington’s strategy after Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appeared to rule out Ukraine joining NATO or retaking all of its territory.

That has sparked major worries in Kyiv and Europe that Ukraine could be forced into a bad deal that leaves the continent facing an emboldened Putin.

In a bid to keep Washington close, Kyiv has held talks over granting access to its rare earths mineral deposits in return for future US security support.

Zelensky said the negotiations were ongoing after his meeting with Vance.

While Zelensky engages in his diplomatic push, on the ground in Ukraine the situation for his forces continued to deteriorate.

Russia’s army on Saturday claimed to have captured a village in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region close to a road linking key towns as Moscow slowly eats up territory.

Despite suffering heavy battlefield losses, the Russian army has been creeping forwards in eastern Ukraine for more than a year as it looks to cut off access to Pokrovsk.

The advances came after a Russian drone struck a cover built to contain radiation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, with radiation levels remaining normal.

“A country that launches such attacks does not want peace. Not. They don’t want it,” Zelensky said.

“It is not preparing for dialogue.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during the 61st Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany on February 15, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday (February 15, 2025) the time has come for the creation of an “armed forces of Europe” and says his country’s fight against Russia has proved that a foundation for it already exists.

The Ukrainian leader said Europe cannot rule out the possibility that “American might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it,” and noted that many leaders have long spoken about how Europe needs its own military.

“I really believe that time has come,” Mr. Zelenskyy told the Munich Security Conference. “The armed forces of Europe must be created.”

Earlier, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz shot back strongly in defense of his stance against the far-right and said his country won’t accept people who “intervene in our democracy,” a day after U.S. Vice President JD Vance scolded European leaders over their approach to democracy.

The German leader spoke at the Munich Security Conference with just eight days before crucial elections in Germany, with polls showing the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party — whose co-leader met with Vance on Friday — currently in second, ahead of Scholz’s own Social Democrats.

Even while lashing out at alleged U.S. meddling in Germany’s democracy, Scholz said he was “pleased” at what he called a shared commitment with the United States to the “preserving the sovereign independence of Ukraine,” and agreed with comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that Russia’s war in Ukraine must end.

But when it came to domestic politics, Scholz also alluded to Germany’s Nazi past, and said the longstanding commitment to “Never Again” — a return to the extreme right — was not reconcilable with support for AfD.

“We will not accept that people who look at Germany from the outside intervene in our democracy and our elections and in the democratic opinion-forming process in the interest of this party,” he said. “That’s just not done, certainly not amongst friends and allies. We resolutely reject this.”

“Where our democracy goes from here is for us to decide,” Scholz added.

A day earlier, Vance that he fears free speech is “in retreat” across the continent.

He said that many Americans saw in Europe “entrenched interests hiding behind ugly Soviet-era words like misinformation and disinformation, who simply don’t like the idea that somebody with an alternative viewpoint might express a different opinion or, God forbid, vote a different way, or even worse, win an election.”

Scholz, shooting back, said “free speech in Europe means that you are not attacking others in ways that are against legislation and laws we have in our country.” He was alluding to rules in Germany that restrict hate speech.

The exchanges came as European leaders have been trying to make sense of a tough new line from Washington on issues including democracy and Ukraine’s future, as the Trump administration continues to upend transatlantic conventions that have been in place since after World War II.

Trump held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin this week in which he said the two leaders would likely meet soon to negotiate a peace deal to end the war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago. Trump later assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that he, too, would have a seat at the table.

The Ukrainian leader said Friday that his country wants security guarantees before any talks with Russia. Shortly before meeting with Vance in Munich, Zelenskyy said he will only agree to meet in-person with Putin after a common plan is negotiated with Trump.

After a 40-minute meeting with Zelenskyy, Vance said the Trump administration wants the war to end.

Beforehand, Vance lectured European officials on free speech and illegal migration on the continent, warning that they risk losing public support if they don’t quickly change course.

“The threat that I worry the most about vis-à-vis Europe is not Russia. It’s not China. It’s not any other external actor,” Vance said in a speech that drew a tepid response. “What I worry about is the threat from within — the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America.”

On the sidelines of the event, Vance met with Alice Weidel, co-leader of AfD.

Mainstream German parties say they won’t work with the party, a longstanding stance to shun the extreme right in a country scarred by Nazism.

Vance later headed back to Washington.

Among other speakers set to take the dais in Munich on Saturday were NATO chief Mark Rutte and foreign ministers from countries including Canada, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia and from Syria’s new interim government.

United States Vice-President JD Vance, second right, and United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, third right, meet with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany, Friday, Feb. 14, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance pledged on Friday (February 15, 2025) that Washington sought to secure a “lasting” peace as he held a first meeting with Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss Donald Trump’s push for a deal with Moscow.

The talks in Munich were seen as a key moment for Kyiv as it tries to keep Washington on its side after Trump stunned allies by announcing truce efforts with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

“We want to achieve a durable, lasting peace, not the kind of peace that’s going to have Eastern Europe in conflict just a couple years down the road,” Mr. Vance said as the meeting wrapped up.

He said “good conversations” had been had with Mr. Zelenskyy about how they could reach that goal, and they would have more talks “in the days, weeks and months to come”.

Mr. Zelenskyy also hailed a “good conversation”, saying the encounter with Mr. Vance was “our first meeting, not last, I’m sure”.

“We are ready to move as quickly as possible towards a real and guaranteed peace,” Mr. Zelenskyy later wrote on X, adding that an envoy from Washington would visit Kyiv.

Mr. Trump rattled Ukraine and its European allies on Wednesday by agreeing to launch peace talks in his first publicly announced call with Putin since returning to office.

The dramatic thaw in relations sparked fears Ukraine could be left out in the cold after nearly three years battling Moscow’s invasion.

U.S. officials have insisted that Zelensky will be involved in negotiations — and the Ukrainian leader said he would be prepared to sit down with Putin after agreeing a “common plan” with Trump.

“Only in this case I’m ready to meet,” Mr. Zelenskyy told the Munich Security Conference before seeing Mr. Vance.

Mr. Vance said ahead of the meeting that the United States was prepared to pressure Russia, adding that Europe should “of course” be at the table.

But he also told Europe to “step up” on bolstering its own defence to allow Washington to focus on threats elsewhere in the world.

U.S. officials have sent mixed messages over Washington’s strategy after Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appeared to rule out Ukraine joining NATO or retaking all of its territory.

Trump’s phone number

That has sparked major worries in Kyiv and Europe that Ukraine could be forced into a bad deal that leaves the continent facing an emboldened Putin.

But Mr. Vance told the Wall Street Journal that Mr. Trump would put everything “on the table” in potential talks and that Washington could even use “military leverage” against Russia to force a deal.

He did not give more away in a keenly awaited keynote speech, as he avoided addressing the war in Ukraine and focused instead on scolding Europe over immigration and free speech.

Saudi Arabia, after being named by Mr. Trump as a likely venue for a meeting with Mr. Putin, said it would welcome holding any talks between the two leaders.

Mr. Zelenskyy appeared to play down fears that Trump was cutting out Kyiv, saying the U.S. President had given him his personal number when they spoke.

European allies, who along with Washington are Ukraine’s strongest backers, demanded they be included in negotiations that will impact their continent’s security.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he assured Mr. Zelenskyy that it is “Ukrainians alone who can drive the discussions for a solid and lasting peace” with Russia.

Mr. Zelenskyy said he had discussed with Macron “many important issues, including security guarantees and specific proposals from France”.

In a bid to keep Washington close, Kyiv has held talks over granting access to its rare mineral deposits in return for future U.S. security support.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen warned that forcing Ukraine into a bad deal would harm US interests.

“I believe that by working together, we can deliver that just and lasting peace,” she said.

Chernobyl strike

While Europe nervously monitors the U.S. stance on Ukraine, there is little ambiguity on Mr. Trump’s determination to get Europe to spend more on its defence.

Fears that Vance could announce a major U.S. troop reduction in Europe did not materialise, but he repeated warnings that Washington needed to focus more on other parts of the globe.

On the sidelines of the conference, Mr. Vance also met with the leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), Alice Weidel, according to German press.

It comes as Mr. Vance criticised Germany for blocking the far right from possibly sharing power in upcoming elections.

The conservative candidate and poll favourite Friedrich Merz insists he would not govern with the AfD or actively seek its support.

Amid the diplomatic flurry in Munich, Mr. Zelenskyy said that back on the ground in Ukraine a Russian drone had struck a cover built to contain radiation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, though he added that radiation levels were normal.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 133 drones across the country overnight, including attack drones, targeting northern regions of the country where the Chernobyl plant lies.

Mr. Zelenskyy said the attack was evidence that “Putin is definitely not preparing for negotiations — he is preparing to continue deceiving the world”.

After Donald Trump announced his plans to initiate peace talks between  Russia and Ukraine following his phone calls with leaders of the respective countries, US Vice President JD Vance met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Friday and said Washington is targeting a “durable and lasting peace” in Ukraine.

NDTV spoke to the defence editor of The Economist, Shashank Joshi, one of the closest observers of the ongoing war, to understand how the peace talks are likely to progress as well as their larger geopolitical ramifications. 

To a question on where Russia stands on the deal, Mr Joshi replied, “So far, the good news for the Russians is that they have had a series of unilateral concessions upfront from the Americans – No NATO membership in Ukraine, no US support for European troops in Ukraine and no NATO Article 5 support for those troops.”

Article 5 of US-led NATO provides that if an ally is the victim of an armed attack, every other member of the alliance will consider this act of violence an armed attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the ally attacked.

Mr Joshi said Trump saying we should have Russia back in the G7 has made Kremlin “delighted”. However, Mr Joshi said at the Munich Security Conference, “JD Vance will deliver a message that says to the Russians as well if you don’t play nice, we can also up the pressure on you.” 

To a question on what lies for Ukraine in the US-brokered deal, he said, They recognise they’re not going to get Crimea back. For them, what is more, important than getting Donetsk, Luhansk and Donbas back is the security guarantee. He said for Ukraine, territory is not the core of the discussion, even though it is profoundly important to them but how to ensure Russia never invades them again will be central to the peace deal.

What Is In For Ukraine?

The defence expert said it would leave Zelensky casting around some other options. The Americans seem to be ruling out NATO membership, “although, with Trump, you never say never,” he said, adding that he wouldn’t rule out the option of European troops in Ukraine as the French are pushing for it. 

Despite scepticism from some countries, the option of European troops in Ukraine is on the table, Mr Joshi said.

“But I think we’re probably heading towards the third option, which is we are not going to give you Article 5 NATO-type security guarantees that say we will come to your aid and intervene, but we will arm you very heavily with billions of dollars worth of weapons so you can defend yourself against Russia,” he added.

Munich:

US Vice President JD Vance pledged Friday that Washington sought to secure a “lasting” peace as he held a first meeting with Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss Donald Trump’s push for a deal with Moscow.

The talks in Munich were seen as a key moment for Kyiv as it tries to keep Washington on its side after Trump stunned allies by announcing peace efforts with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

“We want to achieve a durable, lasting peace, not the kind of peace that’s going to have Eastern Europe in conflict just a couple years down the road,” Vance said as the meeting wrapped up.

He said “good conversations” had been had with Zelensky about how they could reach that goal, and they would have more talks “in the days, weeks and months to come”.

Zelensky also hailed a “good conversation”, saying the encounter with Vance was “our first meeting, not last, I’m sure”.

“We are ready to move as quickly as possible towards a real and guaranteed peace,” Zelensky wrote later on X, adding that an envoy from Washington would visit Kyiv. 

Trump rattled Ukraine and its European allies on Wednesday by agreeing to launch peace talks in his first publicly announced call with Putin since returning to office. 

The dramatic thaw in relations sparked fears Ukraine could be left out in the cold after nearly three years battling against Moscow’s invasion. 

US officials have insisted that Zelensky will be involved in negotiations — and the Ukrainian leader said he would be prepared to sit down with Putin after agreeing a “common plan” with Trump. 

“Only in this case I’m ready to meet,” Zelensky told the Munich Security Conference before seeing Vance. 

Vance said ahead of the meeting that the United States was prepared to pressure Russia, adding that Europe should “of course” be at the table. 

But he also told Europe to “step up” on bolstering its own defence to allow Washington to focus on threats elsewhere in the world. 

US officials have sent mixed messages over Washington’s strategy after Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appeared to rule out Ukraine joining NATO or retaking all of its territory. 

Trump’s Phone Number 

That has sparked major worries in Kyiv and Europe that Ukraine could be forced into a bad deal that leaves the continent facing an emboldened Putin. 

But Vance told The Wall Street Journal that Trump would put everything “on the table” in potential talks, and that Washington could even use “military leverage” against Russia to force a deal. 

He did not give more away in a keenly awaited keynote speech, as he avoided addressing the war in Ukraine and focused instead on scolding Europe over immigration and free speech.  

Saudi Arabia, after being named by Trump as a likely venue for a meeting with Putin, said it would welcome holding any talks between the two leaders. 

Zelensky appeared to play down fears that Trump was leaving Kyiv out in the cold, saying the US president had given him his personal number when they spoke. 

“If he will choose our side, and if he will not be in the middle, I think he will pressure and he will push Putin to stop the war,” Zelensky said. 

In a bid to keep Washington close, Kyiv has held talks over granting access to its rare mineral deposits in return for future US security support. 

European allies, who along with Washington are Ukraine’s strongest backers, demanded that they too be included in negotiations that will impact their continent’s security. 

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen warned that forcing Ukraine into a bad deal would harm US interests. 

“I believe that by working together, we can deliver that just and lasting peace,” she said. 

Chernobyl Strike 

While Europe nervously monitors the US stance on Ukraine, there is little ambiguity on Trump’s determination to get Europe to spend more on its defence. 

Fears that Vance could announce a major US troop reduction in Europe did not materialise, but he repeated warnings that Washington needs to focus more on other parts of the globe. 

Amid the diplomatic flurry in Munich, Zelensky said that back on the ground in Ukraine a Russian drone had struck a cover built to contain radiation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, though he added that radiation levels were normal.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 133 drones across the country overnight, including attack drones, targeting northern regions of the country where the Chernobyl plant lies.

Zelensky said the attack was evidence that “Putin is definitely not preparing for negotiations — he is preparing to continue deceiving the world”.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Munich:

US Vice President JD Vance launched a withering attack Friday against European policies on immigration, populist parties and free speech, echoing President Donald Trump whom he called Washington’s “new sheriff in town”.

Vance’s speech — which focussed on key themes of Trump’s MAGA campaign — was a combative broadside at the Munich Security Conference at a time of deep transatlantic discord over Ukraine, defence, trade and other issues.

Vance stressed that Europe must “step up” in managing its own security, a key bone of contention. But he mostly lambasted the EU’s members on culture war issues.

“There is a new sheriff in town under Donald Trump’s leadership,” said Vance in a speech that stunned the room, and was later condemned as “unacceptable” by German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius.

“We may disagree with your views, but we will fight to defend your right to offer it in the public square,” said Vance. “Agree or disagree.”

Vance slammed EU “commissars” for stifling free expression and charged that “across Europe, free speech, I fear, is in retreat”.

‘Change course’ 

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier had earlier made clear that what had been Berlin’s most important diplomatic relationship had sharply deteriorated since Trump returned to the White House.

“The new American administration has a very different world view to ours,” Steinmeier said. “One that has no regard for established rules, partnership and established trust.”

The German head of state urged European leaders to keep calm in the face of a blizzard of disruptive policy announcements from Washington.

“We must not freeze in fear, or as the English saying goes: Let’s not be a deer caught in the headlights.”

Vance, undeterred, in his later speech urged European countries, including conference host Germany, which faces elections on February 23, to “change course” on immigration.

His speech came a day after a 24-year-old Afghan man was arrested in Munich over a car-ramming attack that wounded 36 people.

“How many times must we suffer these appalling setbacks before we change course and take our shared civilisation in a new direction?” he said.

“Why did this happen in the first place? It’s a terrible story but it’s one we’ve heard way too many times in Europe and unfortunately too many times in the United states as well.

“An asylum seeker, often a young man in his mid-20s already known to police, rams a car into a crowd and shatters a community.”

Defending political parties that oppose immigration and their supporters, Vance added: “No voter on this continent went to the ballot box to open the floodgates to millions of unvetted immigrants.”

‘Meddling’ 

Germany warned earlier Friday against foreign “meddling” in its politics after Vance called for a bigger role for Europe’s anti-immigration parties, nine days before the German general election.

Vance told the Wall Street Journal: “Unfortunately, the will of voters has been ignored by a lot of our European friends” on the issue and urged governments not to exclude anti-immigration parties.

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) looks set for its best ever result of around 20 percent in the election and has received enthusiastic backing from tech billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk.

Vance said Germany should get used to the Tesla and SpaceX boss weighing in, just as the United States tolerated criticism by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.

“If American democracy can survive 10 years of Greta Thunberg’s scolding, you guys can survive a few months of Elon Musk,” he said.

“But what German democracy, what no democracy — American, German or European — will survive is telling millions of voters that their thoughts and concerns, their aspirations, their pleas for relief are invalid or unworthy.”

Vance also touched on a heated German pre-election debate around the need for mainstream political parties to maintain a so called “firewall” of non-cooperation with the AfD.

“Democracy rests on the sacred principle that the voice of the people matters,” he said. “There’s no room for firewalls.”

Pistorius blasted Vance, saying “democracy was called into question by the US Vice President for the whole of Europe”.

“He speaks of the annihilation of democracy. And if I have understood him correctly, he is comparing conditions in parts of Europe with those in authoritarian regimes… that is not acceptable.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Munich:

US Vice President JD Vance met Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky in Munich on Friday for crunch talks on ending Russia’s war, as Kyiv insisted it wanted to hammer out a joint plan with Washington.

The sit-down in Germany was seen as a key moment for Kyiv as it seeks to keep Washington on its side after US President Donald Trump stunned allies by launching peace efforts with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

“I will meet with Russians — with only one Russian guy, with Putin — only after we will have a common plan with Trump, Europe,” Zelensky told the Munich Security Conference before seeing Vance.

“Only in this case I’m ready to meet.”

Vance in the run-up insisted the United States was prepared to pressure Russia to end its three-year war on Ukraine, as he said Europe should “of course” be at the table.

But the vice president also told Europe to “step up” on bolstering its own defence to allow Washington to focus on threats elsewhere in the world.

US officials have sent mixed messages over Washington’s strategy after Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appeared to rule out Ukraine joining NATO or retaking all of its territory.

That has sparked major worries in Kyiv and Europe that Ukraine could be forced into a bad deal that leaves the continent facing an emboldened Putin.

But Vance told the Wall Street Journal that Trump would put everything “on the table” in potential talks, and that Washington could even use “military leverage” against Russia to force a deal.

The vice president did not give more away in a keenly-awaited keynote speech, as he avoided addressing the war in Ukraine and focused instead on scolding Europe over immigration and free speech.

– Trump’s phone number –

Trump rattled US allies on Wednesday by agreeing to launch peace talks in his first publicly announced call with Putin since returning to office.

After being named by Trump as a likely venue for a meeting with Putin, Saudi Arabia said it would welcome holding any talks between the two leaders.

Zelensky appeared to play down fears that Trump was leaving Kyiv out in the cold, as he joked the US president had given him his personal number when they spoke.

“If he will choose our side, and if he will not be in the middle, I think he will pressure and he will push Putin to stop the war,” Zelensky said.

In a bid to keep Washington close Kyiv has held talks over granting access to its rare mineral deposits in return for future US security support.

– Chernobyl strike –

European allies — who along with Washington are Ukraine’s strongest backers — demanded that they too be included in negotiations that will impact their continent’s security.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen warned that forcing Ukraine into a bad deal would harm US interests.

“I believe that by working together, we can deliver that just and lasting peace,” she said.

While Europe nervously monitors the US stance on Ukraine, there is little ambiguity on Trump’s determination to get Europe to spend more on its defence.

Fears Vance could announce a major US troop reduction in Europe did not materialise, but he repeated warnings that Washington needs to focus more on other parts of the globe.

Amid the diplomatic flurry in Munich, Zelensky said that back on the ground in Ukraine a Russian drone had struck a cover built to contain radiation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, adding that radiation levels were normal.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 133 drones across the country overnight — including attack drones — targeting northern regions of the country where the Chernobyl plant lies.

Zelensky said the attack was evidence that “Putin is definitely not preparing for negotiations — he is preparing to continue deceiving the world.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks with Donald Trump via a phone line. (File)