Witkoff walks out of Coalition of Willing meeting: Media reveal reason
Photo: A meeting of the Coalition of the Willing is taking place at the Élysée Palace (Getty Images)
Special Envoy of the US President Steve Witkoff left the Élysée Palace, where a meeting of the countries in the Coalition of the Willing in support of Ukraine is taking place on Thursday, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports.
According to media reports, Trump’s Special Envoy was only partially present at the meeting. Twenty minutes after the session began, information emerged that he had left the room.
As it turned out, Witkoff participated in part of the proceedings and addressed all attending heads of state and government. However, he was forced to leave the meeting, as previously scheduled, for another business.
Trump’s Special Envoy is expected to rejoin the leaders later, when they make a phone call to the US President.
Meeting in Paris
On Thursday, September 4, a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing members to support Ukraine began in Paris. The meeting is taking place at the Élysée Palace.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is attending the summit and has published a video from the start of the event.
The Head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, reported that he, together with the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Rustem Umerov, held a number of bilateral meetings.
In particular, Ukrainian high-ranking officials spoke with:
- Steve Witkoff, US Special Envoy;
- Jonathan Powell, National Security Adviser to the UK Prime Minister;
- Emmanuel Bonne, Diplomatic Adviser to the President of France;
- And other politicians.
According to Yermak, discussions in Paris focused on:
- Security guarantees for Ukraine;
- Tightening sanctions against Russia;
- Returning prisoners of war.
Among the proposals from the coalition partners were the creation of:
- A “no-fly zone”;
- A patrol mission in the Black Sea.
Furthermore, European leaders are also expected to hold a phone call with US President Donald Trump, during which they plan to discuss the issue of security guarantees for Ukraine.
