By Elizabeth Piper, John Irish and Daphne Psaledakis
LONDON/PARIS (Reuters) – U.S., Ukrainian and European officials held “substantive” meetings in London on Wednesday to try to revive peace talks after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio cancelled his trip, raising questions over how much progress was being made.
Rubio’s no-show prompted a broader meeting with foreign ministers from Ukraine, Britain, France and Germany to be cancelled, underscoring the gaps in positions between Washington, Kyiv and its European allies over how to bring an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The downgrading of the talks came at a critical time, days after U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Washington could walk away if there was no progress on a deal soon. Trump raised the pressure on Sunday when he said he hoped Moscow and Kyiv would make a deal this week to end the three-year conflict.
At the heart of Wednesday’s talks was an attempt to establish what Kyiv can possibly accept after Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff presented proposals to a similar session in Paris last week. Three diplomats said those proposals appeared to demand more concessions from Ukraine than Russia.
A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer played down any disappointment over Rubio’s abrupt cancellation and said the talks involved “substantive technical meetings with European, U.S. and Ukrainian officials on how to stop the fighting” triggered by Russia’s full-scale 2022 invasion.
“We remain absolutely committed to securing a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and these talks today are an important part of that,” the spokesperson said.
One official close to the negotiations said progress was being made.
Since Trump expressed his desire to broker peace in Ukraine and made a surprise call to Russian President Vladimir Putin in February, European nations have scrambled to find ways to support Kyiv against Moscow while keeping the U.S. onside.
But Witkoff’s proposals, which several sources said included recognising Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, Washington beginning to lift sanctions on Russia and ruling out Ukrainian membership of NATO, were unacceptable to both Kyiv and other European nations.
‘SAY YES OR WATCH US WALK AWAY’
U.S. Vice President JD Vance said during a visit to India he was optimistic that “the Europeans, the Russians and the Ukrainians are ultimately able to get this thing over the finish line”. But he also threw down the gauntlet.
“We’ve issued a very explicit proposal to both the Russians and the Ukrainians, and it’s time for them to either say yes or for the United States to walk away from this process.
“That means the Ukrainians and the Russians are both going to have to give up some of the territory they currently own. There’s going to have to be some territorial swaps,” Vance said.
The cancellation of Rubio’s trip underlined the difficulty of closing the gaps between the various sides.
A separate source close to the discussions said the downgrading of the parley came after Ukraine drafted a paper for the Europeans on Tuesday in which it said there would be no discussions on territorial issues until “a full and unconditional ceasefire”.
The source said the apparent U.S. jitters could indicate that the Ukrainian position did not align with what Washington’s representatives had agreed so far with the Russians.
Some of Witkoff’s proposals, which Rubio said had received an encouraging reception in Paris, have been rejected by Kyiv.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said Kyiv would not recognise Russian sovereignty over Crimea.
“Ukraine is ready to negotiate – but not to surrender,” Svyrydenko wrote on X. “A full ceasefire – on land, in the air, and at sea – is the necessary first step. If Russia opts for a limited pause, Ukraine will respond in kind. Our people will not accept a frozen conflict disguised as peace.”
HOPE
British government officials pointed to the technical talks to show efforts were ongoing to reach some kind of agreement.
Foreign minister David Lammy and defence minister John Healey held “substantial” discussions with Ukrainian counterparts and Healey was also meeting U.S. Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg.
“We are working at pace with U.S., Ukraine and European allies to end the war and secure a just and lasting peace,” Lammy posted on X.
Rubio spoke to Lammy late on Tuesday and said he looked forward to rescheduling his trip, officials said.
Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s chief of staff, said Kyiv’s delegation had met senior advisers from Britain, France and Germany. “We emphasised that we are committed to (Trump’s) peace efforts,” Yermak wrote on the Telegram messenger.
Beyond Crimea, other major sticking points remain. Sources say U.S. proposals include Ukraine and the Europeans accepting the reality of Russia’s control of the remaining 20% of Ukraine’s territory. Russia is pushing for lifting of EU sanctions against it before negotiations are finished, which Europe staunchly opposes, diplomats said.
(Reporting by John Irish in Paris, Elizabeth Piper, Daphne Psaledakis and Tom Balmforth in London; additional reporting by Erin Banco and Steve Holland in Washington and Anna Pruchnicka and Max Hunder in Kyiv; additional writing by Kate Holton; editing by Humeyra Pamuk, Alison Williams, Ros Russell and Mark Heinrich)
