PM hosts talks on Ukraine peacekeeping force as Putin warned not to play games

Sir Keir Starmer will host further talks on a peacekeeping force for Ukraine on Saturday after warning Vladimir Putin not to play games with a proposed ceasefire.

The Prime Minister is expected to hold a video call with as many as 25 potential members of the “coalition of the willing”, nations that could take part in any peacekeeping operation.

After speaking to French president Emmanuel Macron and Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Store on Friday afternoon, Sir Keir warned: “We can’t allow President Putin to play games with President Trump’s deal.

“The Kremlin’s complete disregard for President Trump’s ceasefire proposal only serves to demonstrate that Putin is not serious about peace.”

Saturday’s call comes as Russia continues to resist proposals for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire put forward by Ukraine and the US earlier in the week.

While Mr Putin has described the principle of a ceasefire as “correct”, he has insisted that it must come with a promise from Ukraine to abandon attempts to join Nato and give up control of regions seized by Russia.

Sir Keir added: “Putin is trying to delay, saying there must be a painstaking study before a ceasefire can take place, but the world needs to see action, not a study or empty words and pointless conditions.

“My message to the Kremlin could not be clearer: stop the barbaric attacks on Ukraine, once and for all, and agree to a ceasefire now. Until then we will keep working around the clock to deliver peace.”

Meanwhile, Mr Trump claimed he was “getting pretty good vibes” from Russia on the prospect of a ceasefire.

Mr Trump told the Full Measure television programme: “I think (Putin’s) going to agree. I really do. I think I know him pretty well and I think he’s going to agree.”

In remarks on Friday, he also said he had asked Moscow not to kill Ukrainian soldiers that both he and Mr Putin have claimed are “surrounded” in Russia’s Kursk region.

The Ukrainian armed forces have firmly denied that their troops have been encircled in Kursk, where Kyiv staged an incursion last year in a bid to secure a bargaining chip for possible talks and change the dynamic of the conflict.

During Saturday’s call, leaders will receive updates from countries on the aid they could provide towards enforcing the peace.

But it remains unclear whether Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni will attend, with an MP from her Brothers of Italy party telling Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday morning it was “too early” to talk about sending peacekeepers.

Giangiacomo Calovini said: “Absolutely we are not against sending Italian troops to help a population, but I think at this moment probably there are no troops that are able to solve the problem in Ukraine.

“We can only send troops if there is a clear UN mandate and for now, this is impossible.”

A UN mandate appears unlikely to be forthcoming as Russia could veto any proposal as a permanent member of the Security Council.

The virtual gathering follows a week in which a diplomatic blitz saw Ukraine agree to the US’s peace plan, and US officials flew to Moscow in an effort to persuade the Kremlin to lay down arms.

G7 allies are united in calling for a ceasefire with “no conditions” to halt the fighting in Ukraine, Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said, in a bid to pile pressure on the Putin regime.

However, while a joint statement by G7 foreign ministers on Friday “reaffirmed” support for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity, and emphasised the need for security guarantees, it stopped short of condemning Russia’s invasion or attributing acts of “aggression” to Moscow.