Keith Kellogg, U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia, said Saturday that there would be no place for Europe at the negotiating table for peace in Ukraine.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Kellogg said that Europe’s point of view would be considered, but they ultimately would not be included in the talks.
“It may be like chalk on the blackboard, it may grate a little bit, but I am telling you something that is really quite honest,” he said.
“And to my European friends, I would say: get into the debate, not by complaining that you might, yes or no, be at the table, but by coming up with concrete proposals, ideas, ramp up [defense] spending.”
Kellogg said that he believed involving too many countries would complicate the process.
He stressed the need to create a durable peace backed by credible security guarantees, but did not define what that meant in practice.
He said that “Trump would need a full range of options”, and that “all options are on the table.”
NATO chief Mark Rutte said Saturday that Europe needed to come up with “good proposals” to help secure peace in Ukraine if it wants to be involved in U.S.-led talks.
“If Europeans want to have a say, make yourself relevant,” Rutte told journalists at the Munich Security Conference.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday he wanted Kellogg to visit the frontline in eastern Ukraine to report on the realities on the ground to the U.S. president.
“It is very important for me that he sees this,” Zelensky said in Munich. “I really want him to bring all this to President Trump... To show him, tell him.”
“And I think that after that we will probably be closer to understanding how we see it... That's my goal for the immediate future,” he added.
“The American side needs... more knowledge of what is happening.”
AFP contributed reporting.
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