At Paris E5 meeting, European defence ministers say Putin is not looking for peace and warn of a 'brutal winter' for Ukraine
Top European defence ministers and EU representatives have warned that Ukraine faces challenging months ahead, insisting they must keep supporting Kyiv despite the United States' bid for talks with Russia. The meeting took place in Paris on Monday.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius joined defence ministers from the E5 group — France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Poland and Italy — at a meeting hosted at the French armed forces ministry.
Speaking at a press conference in Paris, Kallas said: 'The new diplomatic push is there, but it's also clear that Putin's actions tell a different story.' She said she was expecting a 'brutal winter' for Kyiv and that there was 'no hope for imminent peace', reiterating the need to help Ukraine 'withstand the attacks and increase the cost for Russia'.
The meeting came amid a renewed US effort to push Ukraine into peace talks with Russia and growing doubts about Washington's support for Kyiv.
US 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.
German defence minister Boris Pistorius said: 'No results whatsoever comes for those who want to negotiate with Putin. The results are what? It doesn't lead to anything. There is no signal whatsoever that Putin is looking for peace.'
The UK'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 US, 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.'
