Speaking at a press conference in Sweden on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said he welcomed the efforts, though added that they needed to be discussed further.
“There are propositions, like from France, from some Europeans and I think we understand each other and some European countries are really very helpful,” the Ukrainian president said. “It’s not like a plan [for] how to totally stop the war, it’s mostly a plan of ceasefire.”
But, he cautioned: “I know some steps of it, but really we have to discuss it, it’s not done.”
The European initiative is coming as Trump’s peace efforts have hit a new wall. On Tuesday, the White House said a mooted meeting between Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Hungary was not imminent, after Moscow reportedly rejected the idea that a ceasefire should be agreed on the current battlefield contact lines.
One person familiar with the discussions, granted anonymity like others quoted here to speak freely, said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer put forward the idea of a separate ceasefire plan that Ukraine’s allies in Europe would all sign up to. However, a U.K. official disputed this account and said there was no finalized proposal he was pushing forward.
A spokesperson for Starmer said: “We’re working intensively with our allies and partners to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position before, during and after any ceasefire.”