Ukraine’s Zelensky urges pressure on Russia to end war

PARIS

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) arrives to welcome US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff (3L), US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (2R) and France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot before a meeting at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris on April 17, 2025.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was in Paris on Thursday to meet French President Emmanuel Macron about crafting a Ukraine ceasefire, as Washington and Europe seek common ground on ending the fighting.

Top Ukrainian officials were also in the French capital to talk with European and U.S. delegations, President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff said, without saying precisely who they were meeting.

The latest diplomatic initiative comes as US President Donald Trump's push for a ceasefire has yet to bear fruit despite his pledges to quickly end the war.

Zelensky himself urged the allies meeting in Paris to lean on Russia to agree to a ceasefire.

"Russia uses every day and every night to kill. We must put pressure on the killers... to end this war and guarantee a lasting peace," Zelensky said in a Telegram post.

But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the Paris meeting.

"Unfortunately we see from Europeans a focus on continuing the war," he said.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff arrived at the Elysee palace on Thursday morning.

Witkoff and Rubio were then to meet Zelensky's chief of staff Andriy Yermak, as well as Britain's and Germany's national security advisors, the French presidency said.

Keith Kellogg, U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy to Ukraine, had arrived in Paris mid-morning with Rubio.

Russia's recent deadly strikes in Ukraine, including in the cities of Sumy and Kryvyi Rig, show how the war is taking a hefty toll despite a series of diplomatic efforts.

Late on April 16, a Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro killed three people, including a young girl, authorities said.

On April 13, a Russian ballistic missile killed at least 35 people in the Ukrainian city of Sumy.

Macron has taken the lead in seeking to forge a coordinated European response to defending Ukraine, both during the current conflict and in its eventual aftermath after Trump shocked the world by opening direct talks with Russia.

Britain and France are spearheading discussions among a "coalition of the willing" of 30 countries looking to shore up any deal Trump might strike with a "reassurance force."

On Thursday, Macron's office said the purpose of the Paris talks was to "review progress on peace negotiations aimed at ending the Russian aggression in Ukraine."

Yermak said he and Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga as well as Defence Minister Rustem Umerov were in Paris to meet officials from France, Germany, Britain and the United States.

The parties would discuss a potential full ceasefire, the involvement of international peacekeepers, and the development of Ukraine's security framework, Ukraine's foreign ministry said.

Witkoff said this week that Russian President Vladimir Putin was open to "permanent peace", after talks with the Kremlin chief in Saint Petersburg on April 11, their third meeting since Trump took office.

Witkoff said during a Fox News interview broadcast April 14 that he saw a peace deal "emerging".

Putin last month rejected a US proposal for a full and unconditional ceasefire, after Kyiv gave its backing to the idea.