The meeting came amid a renewed U.S. effort to push Ukraine into peace talks with Russia and growing doubts about Washington’s support for Kyiv.
U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said last week he would offer Russia’s Vladimir Putin direct talks with President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy to secure a ceasefire.
“No results whatsoever comes for those who want to negotiate with Putin,” German defense minister Boris Pistoripus said. “The results are what? It doesn’t lead to anything. There is no signal whatsoever that Putin is looking for peace.”
The U.K.’s Wes Streeting added: “While none of us seek confrontation with Russia … We do have to be aware of the threat posed by Russia.”
While pledging “total transparency” with the U.S., France’s Catherine Vautrin said the E5 members would “work together concretely,” focusing on arms production and interoperability.
“Produce more, produce faster, produce equipment suited to today’s conflicts – but we must already be planning for the conflicts of tomorrow,” Vautrin said. “On that, EU financial initiatives can help us move in this direction.”