France to host Ukraine summit on Monday
French President Emmanuel Macron will host more than 20 heads of state and government representatives for a meeting on Ukraine in Paris on Monday.
“Two years after the start of the invasion of Ukraine, the participants will reaffirm their unity and their determination to defeat the war of aggression led by Russia in Ukraine,” the Elysee Palace said in a statement Monday.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, U.K. Foreign Minister David Cameron and Polish President Andrzej Duda will be among officials attending the conference. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will address the conference via videolink.
French President Emmanuel Macron and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy react after signing an agreement, February 16, 2024 at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France.
Pool | Via Reuters
“This conference will be an opportunity to share observations of the situation on the ground, the profound destabilization caused by Russia and its renewed aggressiveness against Ukraine and against Europe,” it added.
The meeting is an opportunity to study the means available to respond ever more quickly and efficiently to the needs of Ukraine and its people, the president’s office said.
An unnamed French presidential official was quoted by news outlet France 24 as saying that the meeting was designed to contradict any “impression that things are falling apart” after Ukraine’s recent challenges on the battlefield.
On Friday, the eve of the second anniversary of the war, Macron commented that Ukraine was “battered and bruised, but still standing.”
“Ukraine is fighting for itself, for its ideals, for our Europe. Our commitment at its side will not waver,” Macron wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
— Holly Ellyatt
China opposes US sanctions on Chinese companies for Russia-related reasons
View of the central business district skyline at sunset in Beijing, China.
Sheng Peng | Visual China Group | Getty Images
China firmly opposes the United…
Read the full article here
