Zelensky warns US not to strike Ukraine deal with Russia "behind our backs"
Munich, Germany - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday warned the US not to strike a deal with Russia "behind our backs," as he urged Europe to take a stand.
Speaking at a gathering of top policymakers in Munich, the Ukrainian leader issued a rallying cry for Europe to take responsibility for its own security – including by eventually forming a continental army.
The plea from Zelensky 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.
"Ukraine will never accept deals made behind our backs without our involvement," Zelensky said in a keynote speech. "No decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine. No decisions about Europe without Europe."
US President Donald Trump 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 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.
Kyiv has urged Washington to come up with a "common plan" to confront Russia, but Zelensky suggested there was not yet a joint stance after his meeting with Vance.
European leaders call for "own plan of action" on Ukraine
Zelensky is pushing for "security guarantees" from both the US and Europe to ensure that any peace deal does not allow Moscow 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.
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 US sows doubts about its future policy toward 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.
Will US and Ukraine strike rare earths deal?
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.
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appeared to rule out Ukraine joining NATO or retaking all of its territory. That has sparked 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."
Cover photo: REUTERS