KYIV, Ukraine — More than a dozen Western leaders attended events in Ukraine on Monday marking the third anniversary of the country’s war with Russia, many pledging more military aid in a conspicuous show of support for Kyiv as uncertainty deepened over the commitment of U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to helping it fend off Russia’s invasion.
The fourth year of fighting could be pivotal, as Trump uses his return to office last month to press for a peace deal. But Ukrainian and European officials have been rattled by his cordial approach to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his tough words for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
World security is at stake in talks over how the war ends, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned.
“The autocrats around the world are watching very carefully whether there’s any impunity if you violate international borders or invade your neighbor, or if there is true deterrence,” she told a conference in Kyiv.
Some observers say Russian success in Ukraine could embolden China’s own ambitions. Just as Moscow claims that Ukraine is rightfully Russian territory, China claims the self-governing island of Taiwan as its own.
In a cascade of unwelcome developments for Kyiv, Trump has in recent days called Zelenskyy a dictator, suggested Ukraine is to blame for the war and ended Putin’s three-year diplomatic isolation by the United States. U.S. officials have also indicated to Ukraine that its hopes of joining NATO are unlikely to be realized and that it probably won’t get back the land that Russia’s army has occupied, amounting to nearly 20% of the country.
Meanwhile, Putin’s troops are making steady progress on the battlefield while Ukraine is grappling with shortages of troops and weapons.
Some of Ukraine’s most important backers, including European leaders and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, were among the stream of dignitaries arriving by train in Kyiv. Others spoke at a conference via video link.
The guests had similar messages: Ukraine and its European partners must be consulted in any peace negotiations, Putin’s ambitions must be thwarted, and Europe must take on more of the burden for its own defense.
Alarm bells sound in Europe as Washington changes course
The shift in Washington’s policy has set off alarm bells in Europe, where governments fear being sidelined by the U.S. in efforts to secure a peace deal and are mulling how they might pick up the slack of any cut in U.S. aid for Ukraine. The changes have also placed strain on transatlantic relations.
European Council President Antonio Costa on Sunday announced that he would convene an emergency summit of the 27 EU leaders in Brussels on March 6, with Ukraine at the top of the agenda.
“We are living a defining moment for Ukraine and European security,” he said in a post on social media.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron are to both visit Washington this week.
EU foreign ministers on Monday approved a new raft of sanctions against Russia. The measures target Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” of ships that it uses to skirt restrictions on transporting oil and gas, or to carry stolen Ukrainian grain. The EU said 74 vessels were added to its shadow fleet list.
Asset freezes and travel bans were imposed on 83 officials and “entities” — usually government agencies, banks or companies.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said his country would provide a 1 billion-euro ($1.04 billion) military systems package to Ukraine this year.
Starmer said Ukrainians’ voices “must be at the heart of the drive for peace,” while Trump’s intervention had “changed the global conversation” and “created an opportunity.”
“Russia does not hold all the cards in this war,” he said.
Coming off a victory in Sunday’s German elections, conservative leader Friedrich Merz — also a staunch backer of Ukraine — posted on X Monday: “More than ever, we must put Ukraine in a position of strength.“
“For a fair peace, the country that is under attack must be part of peace negotiations,” he wrote.
Diplomacy ramps up after record Russian drone attack
On Sunday, Russia launched its biggest single drone attack of the war, pounding Ukraine with 267 drones.
The EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, insisted that the U.S. cannot seal any peace deal to end the war without Ukraine or Europe being involved. She highlighted what she claimed were pro-Russian positions being taken up by the Trump administration.
“You can discuss whatever you want with Putin. But if it comes to Europe or Ukraine, then Ukraine and Europe also have to agree to this deal,” Kallas told reporters in Brussels, where she was chairing a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
Kallas travels to Washington on Tuesday for talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Washington and Moscow draw closer
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said the third anniversary was “a grim milestone.”
“More than 12,600 civilians killed, with many more injured. Entire communities reduced to rubble. Hospitals and schools destroyed,” he said in Geneva.
Russia’s foreign ministry said Saturday that preparations for a face-to-face meeting between Trump and Putin were underway, and U.S. officials have said that they had agreed with Moscow to reestablish diplomatic ties and restart economic cooperation.
Kallas rejected Trump’s earlier inflammatory assertion that Zelenskyy was a dictator for not having held elections after his regular term expired last year, saying, “Russia hasn’t had elections in 25 years.”
Ukrainian law prohibits elections being held while martial law is in place, and Zelenksyy said as recently as Sunday that after martial law is lifted, “there will be elections and people will make their choice.”
