Volodymyr Zelensky has launched a scathing attack on European leaders over their support for Ukraine during an astonishing speech to world leaders at Davos.
Taking to the stage shortly after a meeting with Donald Trump, the Ukrainian president declared Kyiv was living in “Groundhog Day”, adding that Europe “loves to discuss the future but avoids taking action” against Russia.
He added: “Every forum like this one proves it. Just last year, here in Davos, I ended my speech with the words Europe needs to know how to defend itself. A year has passed, and nothing has changed.”
The Ukrainian president did, however, indicate progress during his remarks at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, announcing that Kyiv, Moscow and the US will hold their first trilateral peace talks in the UAE on Friday.
Mr Trump described his meeting with Mr Zelensky as “very good” during brief comments after it concluded. Earlier in the day, the US president reiterated his previous claims that a peace deal in Ukraine was “close”.
The US president’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner were due to hold talks with Vladimir Putin in Moscow later on Thursday.
But Mr Zelensky’s extraordinary criticism of Europe’s failure to take urgent action against Moscow, delivered in an impassioned speech and met with rapturous applause from delegates, suggested the Ukrainian president does not believe any ceasefire with Russia is innocent.
In his wide-ranging reproach, the Ukrainian president implored European leaders to demonstrate more unity, both in terms of their approach to Russia, but also in proving its ability to operate independently of the US.
“Instead of becoming a truly global power, Europe remains a beautiful but fragmented kaleidoscope of small and middle powers,” he said.
He hit out at the “endless internal arguments” in Europe and “things left unsaid that stop Europe from uniting and speaking honestly enough to find real solutions”.
Too often, Europeans turn against each other instead of standing together to stop Russia, and efforts to convince the Trump administration to change its ways are futile, Mr Zelensky said, calling on the continent to have more courage in tackling global issues itself.
“Instead of taking the lead in defending freedom worldwide – especially when America’s focus shifts elsewhere – Europe looks lost trying to convince the US president to change. But he will not change. President Trump loves who he is. And he says he loves Europe, but he will not listen to this kind of Europe,” Mr Zelensky said.
European leaders rejoiced in Davos after Mr Trump backed down from his threats to impose tariffs on several countries over their opposition to a US takeover of Greenland, after stating he had agreed a deal with Nato.
But Mr Zelensky said that Europe needs to get out of “Greenland mode” and take more material action to support Ukraine and damage Russia’s war effort – a criticism which was a centrepiece of his speech.
Discussing the European Union’s failure to reach an agreement to use frozen Russian assets in its €90bn loan for Ukraine, the Ukrainian president declared that “Putin managed to stop Europe”.
Despite thanking the bloc for freezing the assets in the first place, Mr Zelensky said: “It is Putin who is deciding how the frozen Russian assets should be used. When the time came to use the assets to defend against Russian aggression, the decision was blocked.”
He also turned his attention to Russia’s shadow fleet of sanctioned oil tankers, questioning why Mr Trump was able to “stop tankers from the shadow fleet and seize oil, but Europe doesn’t”.
Within hours of his comments, the French navy, with Britain’s assistance, intercepted one of Russia’s sanctioned “shadow fleet” oil tankers in the Mediterranean.
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French president Emmanuel Macron revealed that French forces had boarded a vessel this morning with allied support. The ship was subject to international sanctions and suspected of operating under a false flag, he said.
“We are determined to uphold international law and to ensure the effective enforcement of sanctions,” the French president wrote on social media. “The activities of the ‘shadow fleet’ contribute to financing the war of aggression against Ukraine.”
In a post on X, Mr Zelensky responded: “Thank you, France! Thank you, @EmmanuelMacron! This is exactly the kind of resolve needed to ensure that Russian oil no longer finances Russia’s war.”
