French, US, Ukrainian leaders meet briefly ahead of key discussions

The meeting among French President Emmanuel Macron, US President-elect Donald Trump, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ended just 20 minutes after it began, without a final statement.

The agreement to hold the meeting was reached just before it began, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

During his election campaign, Trump promised to end the Ukrainian conflict within 24 hours of his inauguration, as well as halt the billions of dollars in aid to Kyiv, redirecting those funds to address the needs of the US population.

Trump, who arrived in Paris to attend the reopening of the fire-damaged Notre-Dame Cathedral, was welcomed by President Macron at the Élysée Palace on December 7. 

Shortly thereafter, President Zelenskyy joined their meeting. International media outlets published a joint photo of Trump, Macron, and Zelenskyy at the French presidential residence. The meeting took place before the Notre-Dame Cathedral's reopening ceremony and was brief. 

“I had a good and productive trilateral meeting with President Donald Trump and President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace,” Zelenskyy wrote following the meeting.

“We all want this war to end as soon as possible and in a just way,” he wrote. 

He thanked Macron for organising the meeting and said: “President Trump is, as always, resolute. I thank him.”

Zelenskyy said the trio had agreed to continue working together and keep in contact.

By Naila Huseynova