<h6><strong>Ane Barcos/Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, briefed the heads of state and government of the EU on Wednesday about his recent meeting in Washington with the President of the United States, Donald Trump, in view of the extraordinary European summit on March 6.</strong></h4> The videoconference meeting with the heads of state and government of the European Union was called by the President of the European Council, António Costa, and was also attended by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. “This morning I met with António Costa, Ursula von der Leyen and all the Member States to promote the creation of a European security and defence area and prepare the next European Council,” declared the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, through social networks. “Ukraine, Spain and the world need a strong and united Europe, and we are going to give it to them,” he added. Following the teleconference, Costa stressed that the information provided by Macron was “very useful in preparing the special European Council on March 6,” in which key decisions will be made on support for Ukraine and strengthening European defense. For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed the bloc’s commitment “to work together to create the necessary conditions for a lasting and solid peace in Ukraine and for the security of Europe.” The videoconference took place a day after reports of an agreement in which Kyiv would have agreed to give up part of its mineral wealth in exchange for continued support from the new US administration. According to Trump himself, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could travel to Washington in the coming weeks to sign the agreement. During his meeting with Trump on Monday, Macron stressed the importance of establishing a lasting peace, noting that Europe faces a decisive moment. “We need guarantees for a solid and lasting peace,” he said. For his part, Trump assured that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be willing to accept the presence of European peacekeepers in Ukraine. “Yes, he will accept it. I have raised the issue with him and, if we achieve this agreement, he will not seek further war,” the president said. Since the beginning of the peace negotiations unilaterally promoted by the United States, Macron has led efforts to strengthen Europe's position in the peace talks, with the aim of preventing the EU from being left out of the negotiations led by Trump and Putin. To coordinate these efforts, the President of the Council, António Costa, called an extraordinary summit for March 6, in which European leaders will analyze the evolution of the conflict in Ukraine and security on the continent.
