French President Emmanuel Macron has called an emergency summit with European leaders in response to escalating concerns over President Donald Trump's recent foreign policy moves. The meeting, scheduled for Monday in Paris, addresses the implications of Trump's actions on European security and NATO. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski highlighted the urgency, noting that Trump's approach resembles "reconnaissance through battle," where boundaries are tested to gauge reactions. The summit seeks to unify European nations and formulate a collective response to these developments.
“I'm very glad that President Macron has called our leaders to Paris," Sikorski said, suggesting the meeting would involve discussing the implications of Trump's actions "in a very serious fashion."
“President Trump has a method of operating which the Russians call razvedka boyem – reconnaissance through battle. You push and you see what happens, and then you change your position…And we need to respond," he continued.
European leaders are racing to formulate a response after Trump declared that negotiations to end the conflict would commence "immediately" following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump’s Russia-Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, further complicated matters by stating that Europe would not participate in the discussions.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the meeting a “once in a generation” moment for national security.
“The UK will work to ensure we keep the US and Europe together,” Starmer said. “We cannot allow any divisions in the alliance to distract from the external enemies we face.”
Leaders from Britain, Germany, Poland, Italy, and Denmark have been invited to attend the event.
Macron congratulated Trump after he won the 2024 election, expressing a willingness to work with the U.S. president.
“Ready to work together as we did for four years. With your convictions and mine. With respect and ambition. For more peace and prosperity,” he wrote on social media.
Last week, Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Meanwhile, U.S. officials visited Europe and outlined aspects of a potential peace plan, including significant concessions to Russia. Many have raised concerns that Ukraine could be sidelined and Europe excluded from the peace process.
The European diplomatic push follows remarks by U.S. Defense Secretary Peter Hegseth in Brussels, suggesting that Ukraine’s NATO membership or a return to its pre-2014 borders was unrealistic. Critics argued it amounted to giving Putin major concessions before negotiations started.