European leaders advise Zelenskyy to be ‘very careful’ in coming days – media
European heads of state and government clearly have a deep mistrust of the United States in peace negotiations with Russia and Ukraine. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron, in a confidential phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several other European politicians, issued a sharp warning that the United States could betray Ukraine and Europe, Der Spiegel reports.
"There is a possibility that the USA will betray Ukraine on the territorial issue without providing clear security guarantees," Macron said, according to an English transcript of the phone call obtained by Spiegel.
According to the document, Merz said Zelenskyy should be "extremely careful in the coming days."
"They're playing games with you as well as with us," Merz said, apparently referring to two American negotiators, Steve Witkoff, a real estate magnate, and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.
It is noted that these and other statements contained in the transcript of the conversation illustrate the deep mistrust of Europeans toward Trump's two confidantes. Although Europeans publicly praise Washington's new initiative, the document reveals that, in addition to Merz and Macron, other conference participants also distrust the two American envoys.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb, one of the few Europeans who has a good relationship with Trump, also warned against the negotiating duo.
"We can't leave Ukraine and Volodymyr alone with these guys," he said at one point in the conversation.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who also enjoys Trump's favor, echoed this sentiment, according to the written record.
"I agree with Alexander, we must protect Volodymyr," Rutte said.
Stubb declined to comment, and Rutte did not respond to Spiegel's request.
A telephone conference call between the heads of state and government took place on Monday. The Europeans' talks with Zelenskyy were preceded by meetings between Ukrainian Security Advisor Rustem Umerov and US President Trump's negotiators in Florida. In addition to Foreign Minister Marco Rubio, Witkoff and Kushner also participated.
In addition to Macron, Merz, Rutte, and Stubb, the confidential European telephone conversation on Monday included Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and EU Council President António Costa.
Several participants confirmed the conversation's existence to Spiegel in response to a request for comment. Two participants said the content of the call was accurately reported but declined to confirm specific quotes as it was confidential. Zelenskyy's press secretary declined to comment on the conversation's content.
In Paris, on the contrary, they denied that Macron had spoken about the threat of betrayal by the Americans.
"The president did not use such language," the Élysée Palace responded to a request for comment. However, the presidential administration declined to provide information about what the French believe Macron said at the meeting, citing the confidentiality of the negotiations.
The German Chancellor's Office stated that it did not wish to comment on "disseminated excerpts of the conversation." Merz spoke "in detail and publicly" about the phone call, emphasizing the importance of mobilizing frozen Russian assets and transatlantic cooperation.