Starmer hails ‘important moment for peace’ as Ukraine backs US ceasefire plan
The Prime Minister said the ‘ball is now in the Russian court’.
Sir Keir Starmer hailed a “remarkable breakthrough” in talks between the US and Ukraine after the countries agreed a plan for a 30-day ceasefire.
The Prime Minister, who has led European efforts to build a peacekeeping mission in the event an agreement to end the war is reached, said the “ball is now in the Russian court”.
Donald Trump’s US administration also said on Tuesday it would immediately lift its suspension of military aid to Ukraine and its intelligence sharing with Kyiv.
Sir Keir will convene a phone call of leaders from what he has dubbed the “coalition of the willing” on Saturday, when they will discuss peacekeeping efforts aimed at deterring Russia’s Vladimir Putin from launching a future attempt to conquer Ukraine if a deal to end the conflict is reached.
“This is an important moment for peace in Ukraine and we now all need to redouble our efforts to get to a lasting and secure peace as soon as possible.”
He added: “As both American and Ukrainian delegations have said, the ball is now in the Russian court. Russia must now agree to a ceasefire and an end to the fighting too.”
Leaders joining the Prime Minister in Saturday’s call are “ready to help bring an end to this war in a just and permanent way that allows Ukraine to enjoy its freedom,” Sir Keir added.
Ukrainian leader Mr Zelensky said his country is “ready to accept” the ceasefire proposal and challenged Russia to do the same in a post on social media platform X.
“Ukraine is ready to accept this proposal — we see it as a positive step and are ready to take it. Now, it is up to the United States to convince Russia to do the same. If Russia agrees, the ceasefire will take effect immediately,” he said.
Mr Zelensky added he was “grateful” to US president Mr Trump for the “constructive conversation” between the nations, despite tensions developing between the pair over recent weeks.
The US President, meanwhile, said he wanted to “get this show on the road” and end the war in Ukraine after the agreement was reached.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Mr Trump said: “Ukraine, ceasefire, Ukraine, ceasefire, just agreed to a little while ago.
“Now we have to go to Russia, and hopefully President Putin will agree to that also, and we can get this show on the road.
“We want to get that war over with.”
Mr Trump claimed US officials would meet with their Russian counterparts “later on today and tomorrow” to discuss the deal.
He added: “If we can get Russia to do it, that’ll be great. If we can’t, we just keep going on and people are going to get killed, lots of people.”
Mr Trump halted intelligence-sharing and military aid to Kyiv following his public bust-up with the Ukrainian president in the White House’s Oval Office.
The diplomatic push to bring an end to the war comes on a day when:
– Ukraine launched its largest drone attack of the war, with the Russian defence ministry claiming it had shot down 337 drones that had targeted more than 10 regions, including the capital city Moscow.
– Russia said it regained more territory in the western Kursk region of the country, which Ukrainian forces invaded last summer in a bid to win a bargaining chip for future negotiations.
– Defence chiefs from across Europe, including Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, met in Paris to begin planning for the “coalition of the willing” European peacekeeping plan.
Further meetings between defence ministers, including UK Defence Secretary John Healey, will take place in Paris on Wednesday.
Foreign ministers from the G7 – including David Lammy and US counterpart Marco Rubio – will meanwhile meet in Canada from Wednesday to Friday, where Ukraine’s future is expected to be discussed.
