'Coalition of the willing': Starmer hosts Ukraine peace summit as PM urges Putin to 'come to the negotiating table'

15 March 2025, 10:47

Sir Keir Starmer has warned Putin that "the world is watching" as he urged leaders to keep up the pressure on Russia during a virtual Ukraine peace summit - dubbed the 'Coalition of the Willing' - on Saturday.

The meeting, held by the Prime Minister on Saturday morning, saw world leaders including French President Emanuel Macron gather online as thy united behind Ukraine.

"Putin is the one trying to delay It’s very simple, he needs to stop these barbaric acts in Ukraine and agree to a ceasefire," Starmer told world leaders from inside Number 10.

"The world is watching," he warned, "but - and this is a big but for us - we can’t simply sit back and wait for [peace] to happen."

Late on Friday, Donald Trump insisted that peace talks are going "really well", despite claims that Putin is trying to delay the deal.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Emmanuel Macron both accused the Russian leader of adding unnecessary complications to the agreement.

In response, Starmer said the nations gathered behind Ukraine need to "keep the pressure on Putin".

"That means strengthening Ukraine so they can defend themselves… and secondly, being prepared to defend any deal ourselves, from the coalition of the willing.

"Thirdly," Starmer added, "given the developments of the last few days... keep the pressure on Putin".

Putin said on Thursday that he agreed with the US-brokered ceasefire deal in principle, but that there were "nuances" he thought needed to be addressed.

Onlookers believe those conditions include a requirement that Ukraine does not join NATO, and that its allies stop arming it.

Starmer's video call with as many as 25 countries includes European nations, the EU Commission, Nato, Canada, Ukraine, Australia and New Zealand.

Topics on the table are also set to include a further look into how each country may contribute to the coalition.

The countries involved will work to deter future Russian aggression should a peace agreement be brokered by US President Donald Trump's administration.

Speaking during a visit to the Justice Department on Friday, Trump said talks were "tough" but there have been some good results so far.

He said if he had not stepped in to put an end to the conflict, it could have resulted in World War III.

Defence analyst says Donald Trump's desire for peace is 'genuine'

'Complete disregard'

Before he convenes the meeting of world leaders, Sir Keir said: "We can't allow President Putin to play games with President Trump's deal.

"The Kremlin's complete disregard for President Trump's ceasefire proposal only serves to demonstrate that Putin is not serious about peace.

"If Russia finally comes to the table, then we must be ready to monitor a ceasefire to ensure it is a serious and enduring peace.

"If they don't, then we need to strain every sinew to ramp up economic pressure on Russia to secure an end to this war."

Mr Putin has said "the idea is correct and we certainly support it", but signalled he wanted Ukraine to drop its ambition to join Nato, and for Kyiv to cede control of regions captured by the Russians during the course of the war, before he agrees to stop the fighting.

The Prime Minister added: "Putin is trying to delay, saying there must be a painstaking study before a ceasefire can take place, but the world needs to see action, not a study or empty words and pointless conditions.

"My message to the Kremlin could not be clearer: stop the barbaric attacks on Ukraine, once and for all, and agree to a ceasefire now. Until then we will keep working around the clock to deliver peace."

During Saturday's call, leaders will receive updates from countries on the aid they could provide towards enforcing the peace.

The virtual gathering follows a week in which a diplomatic blitz saw Ukraine agree to the US's peace plan, and US officials flew to Moscow in an effort to persuade the Kremlin to lay down arms.

G7 allies are united in calling for a ceasefire with "no conditions" to halt the fighting in Ukraine, Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said, in a bid to pile pressure on the Putin regime.

Mr Trump has meanwhile urged his Russian counterpart to spare the lives of Ukrainian soldiers who now find themselves surrounded in the Kursk region of Russia, saying Mr Putin can prevent a "horrible massacre".

Speaking earlier on Friday, Trump said that his envoy Steve Witkoff had had "good" and "productive" talks with Putin.

But the US president also said that Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region of Russia were "completely surrounded" and in a "very bad and vulnerable position".

He said that he had requested to Putin that their "lives be spared" to avoid a "horrible massacre". Ukraine has denied being surrounded in Kursk and said its troops had been pulled back.

Writing on his TruthSocial site, Trump said there was "a very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end".

Putin sets out 'impossible' terms in ceasefire deal

"Crooked Joe Biden got us into a real 'mess' with Russia (and EVERYTHING ELSE!), but I'm going to get us out," he said.

"Millions of people are needlessly dead, never to be seen again…and there will be many more to follow if we don't get the Cease Fire and Final Agreement with Russia completed and signed.

"There would have been NO WAR if I were President. It just, 100%, would not have happened."

Former Head of the Army, Sir Peter Wall, discusses ceasefire prospects

Putin appeared to agree to the terms of the ceasefire deal in a Kremlin press conference on Thursday, before setting out a number of harsh conditions for peace that appeared to contradict any such agreement.

The list of ceasefire demands set out by Russia include guarantees that Ukraine will not receive weapons shipments from international backers or train soldiers during any 30-day pause.

Zelenskyy hit out at the "very manipulative" Russian president on Thursday night, after his press conference. He said on Friday that Putin wanted to extend the war.

He also insisted any deal should include recognition of Ukrainian territory captured by Russia, harsh limits on the size of Ukraine’s army, in addition to a full ban on Nato membership and peacekeepers on the ground.

Former US official under George Bush discusses Ukraine ceasefire with Ben Kentish

A ceasefire should lead to "an enduring peace and remove the root causes of this crisis", Putin said.

The Russian leader, who many claim has little incentive to agree to any such deal, has set out large-scale demands that many have branded 'unrealistic' in a bid to draw out negotiations.

The Russian leader also claimed his nation was fully in control of the Kursk region, adding that Ukrainian troops there "have been isolated".

Putin's scepticism over the terms of a ceasefire deal with Ukraine has led many to highlight that the prolonging of any negotiations is a 'signature move' on Russia's part that has been repeated many time before.

Zelenskyy said on Thursday: "Putin, of course, is afraid to say directly to President Trump that he wants to continue this war, he wants to kill Ukrainians.

"That's why they in Moscow are framing the idea of silence with such preconditions that nothing will happen at all or that it will not happen for as long as possible."

"As we have always said, the only one who will drag things out, the only one who will be unconstructive, is Russia," Zelenskyy said.

"They want a war. Putin has stolen years of peace and continues this war - day after day."

Zelenskyy also said that Ukraine's allies should continue to put pressure on Putin to come to the negotiating table.