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EU top diplomat heading to US for talks
EU top diplomat heading to US for talks
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has said she will travel to the United States on Tuesday for talks with her counterpart Marco Rubio as Washington pushes to end Russia's war in Ukraine.
Europe is scrambling to make its voice heard after US President Donald Trump sidelined Kyiv and its backers on the continent by launching talks with Moscow to end the three-year war.
"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 journalists Monday at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
Trump has fuelled fears that he is willing to undercut Ukraine, unleashing broadsides against President Volodymyr Zelensky that echo Russian rhetoric, including calling him a "dictator".
"To look at the messages that come from the United States, then it's clear that the Russian narrative is there, very strongly represented," Kallas said.
Kallas's visit to Washington comes amid a flurry of European outreach to the Trump administration, with French President Emmanuel Macron set to meet the US leader at the White House on Monday.
The EU's top diplomat said she would hold meetings Wednesday and Thursday with Rubio and other senior officials.
Trump's team has not only sparked fear in Europe over Ukraine but also about Washington's commitment to helping protect its allies in NATO.
"It's clear that the statements coming from the United States make us all worried," Kallas said.
"I want to stress that NATO is a defence alliance that is there for the defence of all the members, and it has worked well, also for America."
EU leaders will meet in Brussels next week for an emergency summit on Ukraine and bolstering their own defences.
Kallas said the leaders would look to strike a deal on supplying a new package of key weaponry to Kyiv.
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