G7 allies united in calling for Ukraine ceasefire with no conditions – Lammy
G7 allies are united in calling for a ceasefire with “no conditions” to halt the fighting in Ukraine, David Lammy has said in a bid to pressure Vladimir Putin as he resists accepting peace proposals.
Speaking after a meeting with counterparts in Canada, the Foreign Secretary said there would be a “detailed statement” from nations outlining a joint position on the crisis.
It came as Donald Trump said on Friday the US had “very good and productive” discussions with the Russian leader, claiming there was a “very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end.”
Kyiv earlier this week backed proposals from Washington for a 30-day ceasefire to the conflict which White House envoy Steve Witkoff later presented to Mr Putin directly in a meeting on Thursday.
Details
The Russian leader has claimed “the idea is correct, and we certainly support it” but questioned the details of the US-brokered plan and appeared to indicate certain provisos would be required for the Kremlin to fully agree to it.
Speaking after meeting partners in Quebec, Mr Lammy said: “I think that there is a unified approach that we need an enduring peace that lasts, I think that there is unity that now is the time for a ceasefire with no conditions.
“Ukraine has set their position out. It is now for Russia to accept it. I think that there is a coalition of the willing emerging to give Ukraine the security architecture and arrangements that they need, and to get into the detail of any monitoring of that ceasefire, going forward.
“On all of that, there was common ground, and the G7 family came together.”
Trump
Meanwhile, in a post on his Truth Social media platform, Mr Trump said: “We had very good and productive discussions with President Vladimir Putin of Russia yesterday, and there is a very good chance that this horrible, bloody war can finally come to an end
— BUT, AT THIS VERY MOMENT, THOUSANDS OF UKRAINIAN TROOPS ARE COMPLETELY SURROUNDED BY THE RUSSIAN MILITARY, AND IN A VERY BAD AND VULNERABLE POSITION.
“I have strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared. This would be a horrible massacre, one not seen since World War II. God bless them all!!!”
In his nightly address in Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Russian leader was too “afraid” to tell Mr Trump he wants to continue the war.
“That’s why, in Moscow, they are surrounding the ceasefire idea with such pre-conditions that it either fails or gets dragged out for as long as possible,” he said.
Meanwhile, speaking alongside the Nato secretary general Mark Rutte in the Oval Office, Mr Trump said: “A lot of the details of a final agreement have actually been discussed … Now we’re going to see if Russia is there and, if not, it will be a very disappointing moment for the world.”
Speaking on Fox News, US national security adviser Mike Waltz suggested Russia could get the Donbas industrial region as part of a peace deal.
In 2022, Moscow illegally annexed the Donetsk and neighbouring Luhansk cities, which make up the Donbas, but Russian forces do not fully control the area.
A series of suggestions about what an agreement might look like were put to Mr Waltz, including that “maybe the Donbas region in particular… that would go to Putin”, to which he replied: “You’re not wrong in any of that.
“What’s important is we are discussing those things with both sides.”
It is unclear whether he was suggesting the territory could be formally ceded to the Kremlin.
‘Cautious optimism’
He said the US has “cautious optimism” an agreement can be reached soon after Mr Witkoff’s meeting.
Running alongside efforts to broker a ceasefire between the two sides are discussions among the so-called “coalition of the willing” about how to best help Kyiv deter future Russian aggression in the event of a peace deal.
Sir Keir Starmer will convene a summit of European and Commonwealth nations on Saturday to consider support options, which he has said could include deploying British peacekeeping troops to Ukraine.
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Trump will still lob a brave country under the bus but never call for fair elections in Russia. Europe needs to step up where. The US has rolled over and assumed the position.
Mr Putin’s resignation has to be part of any deal.
Who do you think’s going to replace him – Graham Norton?
Isn’t that for the Russians to decide or has your part-time support for democracy gone AWOL again.
It’s a pity David Lammy didn’t put as much effort into stopping Israel murdering thousands of Palestinians as he does those parties involved Ukraine/Russia war. Apparently he once said there were no journalists in Gaza. Is this true. Well,csirt if. All they are all dead thanks to being deliberately targeted by the Israeli army. And I wonder what this champagne socialist Lammy would do if & when Donald Trump annexes Greenland as stated yesterday when he entertained the Chief of NATO in the Oval Office and repeated his threat in front of the watching world. Trump openly said he was… Read more »
The G7 is not a family, unless you mean in the sense of the Mafia.
When will Lammy give up his support/membership of the LFI or give back the £32,500 he’s been given by pro Israel groups?