KYIV: Kyiv’s allies pressed Russia on Saturday to accept a 30-day unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine from Monday, threatening Moscow with coordinated sanctions if it did not agree to the demand. The ultimatum came during a joint press conference in Kyiv attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the leaders of France, Germany, the UK and Poland. The proposal united allies including the United States, they said.

The unprecedented visit was the first time the leaders of the four European nations had made a joint trip to Ukraine. “We have just now... decided to support a ceasefire which will begin next Monday, without any preconditions,” France’s Emmanuel Macron said. Around 20 member countries of the “coalition of the willing” supporting Ukraine had held a videoconference with Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Zelensky. “In the event of a violation of this ceasefire, we have agreed that massive sanctions will be prepared and coordinated between Europeans and Americans,” Macron said. The United States and Ukraine have been for weeks pushing for a similar proposal, which Russia has not accepted. — AFP (See Page 6)

Washington has threatened to walk out of talks over the lack of progress to stop the war, which US President Donald Trump had said during his campaign that he could end swiftly.

Kyiv and Western allies feared that Trump was pivoting towards Moscow’s position, because he has clashed with Zelensky, but the White House recently showed growing impatience with Putin. “The position we’ve now got to today is absolute unity across a whole range of countries around the world, including the United States, that there must be that 30-day unconditional ceasefire,” Starmer said. The five leaders in Kyiv held a “fruitful” call with Trump to update him on the results of the meeting, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said.- AFP (See Page 6)