Zelenskyy sets out Ukraine’s red lines in press conference with Macron – as it happened | Ukraine

… and on that note, it’s a wrap!

• The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, has said she fears talks between the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will pile pressure on Ukraine to make concessions with the two men expected to meet on Tuesday (14:47, 14:52).

• Her comments came as Emmanuel Macron’s held talks with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Paris (11:05, 16:33, 17:22), with the pair insisting that no decisions about Ukraine can be made without Ukraine and Europe at the table, and calls to put more pressure on Moscow instead (16:41, 16:45, 16:55, 17:07).

• The talks were followed by a series of phone calls with European leaders and Witkoff to coordinate before tomorrow’s talks (15:14, 15:16, 15:26).

• The Netherlands has announced plans to make an additional contribution of €250m to the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, or PURL, programme of Nato purchases of US weapons for Ukraine (18:45).

• These developments come as the Russian army made its biggest advance in Ukraine for a year in November, an AFP analysis of data from the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) showed (14:20).

In other news,

• Polish prime minister Donald Tusk and German chancellor Friedrich Merz sought to stress the close relationship between the two countries despite their difficult past (15:24, 15:51), but the unresolved questions around the memory and the compensation for the second world war still dominated their press conference after high-level talks in Berlin (15:55, 16:13, 16:27, 16:36).

• Lithuania has complained of “unacceptable” disruptions in it airspace after Vilnius airport once again had to temporarily close down due to smugglers balloons from Belarus, causing widespread travel disruption (10:43), with calls to impose further sanctions on Minsk in retaliation (17:57).

And that’s all from me, Jakub Krupa, for today.

If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at [email protected].

I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.

Back to Ukraine, it’s worth noting that the Netherlands has announced plans to make an additional contribution of €250m to the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, or PURL, programme of Nato purchases of US weapons for Ukraine.

Announcing the move, defence minister Ruben Brekelmans said it was the Netherlands’ “substantial contribution” to help Ukraine defend itself over the winter as it faces growing pressure from the US to agree to a peace deal.

Frozen-in tenor: Italian mayor apologises over Pavarotti statue stuck in ice rink

Angela Giuffrida

in Rome

And now for something a bit lighter, we go to Italy, where a local mayor has apologised to the family of Luciano Pavarotti after a Christmas ice rink entrapped a statue of the legendary opera singer – and skaters were invited to “give [him] a high five”.

The lifesize bronze, featuring Pavarotti wearing a tuxedo with his arms outstretched and holding a handkerchief in one hand, was unveiled to much fanfare last year in a square in the centre of Pesaro, a coastal city in the Marche region.

The statue was intended as a tribute to the late tenor, who had a home and honorary citizenship in Pesaro, also the birthplace of the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini.

But instead, surrounding Pavarotti with “a very ugly” ice rink had “ridiculed” his memory, Nicoletta Mantovani, the tenor’s widow, said after images of the statue “trapped” up to its knees were circulated online.

Mantovani told the local newspaper Il Resto del Carlino that she was “disappointed, angry and upset”.

Describing the scene, Il Resto del Carlino said the tribute to Pavarotti, who died in 2007, aged 71, has “ended up stuck between the guardrails and Christmas lights, like a stage character who fell into the wrong place and now finds himself directing the traffic of skaters”.

Meanwhile, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has spoken with Lithuania’s president Gitanas Nausėda over the phone about the latest balloon incidents over the Baltic country (10:43).

She said that “the situation at the border with Belarus is worsening, with the growing incursions of smuggling balloons into Lithuania’s airspace.”

She added:

“Such hybrid attack by the Lukashenka regime is completely unacceptable. Lithuania continues to have our full solidarity. We are preparing further measures under our sanctions regime.”

Asked about Europe’s pressure on Russia, Macron says that the latest round of sanctions, including on oil and gas sectors as well as the shadow fleet, has put most pressure on Russia “since the start of the war,” and could be “a gamechanger.”

“ I really believe that in the weeks to come, come, the pressure on the Russian economy and the capacity of Russia to finance the war efforts will drastically change,” he says.

He also gets asked the use of frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine and Belgium’s continuing opposition to the EU’s proposed reparations loan, insisting he is confident “we will find an option that technically addresses all the legitimate questions being raised.”

Responding to a question about the corruption investigations in Ukraine, including Zelenskyy’s former senior aide, Andriy Yermak, Macron says the EU followed these issues very closely, but – toeing the EU line – insists the fact that the probe was progressing showed the authorities were working freely.

He says it’s right to demand accountability and scrutiny from Ukraine, but notes that the key issue is how the state responds to any allegations, through independent authorities and judiciary.

He also points out that the developments in Ukraine come in stark contrast to how such allegations are handled in Russia.

In his comments, Ukraine’s Zelenskyy says that Ukraine’s priorities remain focused on security guarantees, maintaining sovereignty and territory, as he insists that Russia must not get rewards for its aggression on Ukraine.

He also plays down the Kremlin’s claims of Russian advances, saying they are exaggerated.

He says he hopes to have talks with US president Donald Trump to discuss next steps once Steve Witkoff is back from his talks in Russia this week.

Macron says that “the coming days will see further essential discussions between the US and the Coalition of the Willing to clarify American participation” in any future security guarantees for Ukraine.

Similarly, when it comes to the broader issue of peace negotiations, he says there will be “greater clarity” once US and Russian representatives talk in the coming days, with the key question of whether Russia is prepared to move from its demands.

“For our part, we will continue to support all peace efforts in the meantime, and we will continue to support Ukraine’s resistance efforts,” he says.

Opening the press conference with Zelenskyy in Paris, Macron stressed France’s “full support” for Ukraine ahead of what he says is “a moment that could be a turning point” in talks about ending the war.

Straight away, he notes that “at a time when we are talking about peace, Russia continues to kill and destroy.”

He commends the US efforts to end the war, and says the key objective is to stop the killing, but adds that “when we talk about peace, everyone has a role to play.”

“Russia must stop the aggression. It has given no signal, no proof to that effect,” he says.

He adds that only Ukraine can make decisions about its territory, and insists that security guarantees must not be discussed without both Ukrainians and the Europeans – and more broadly, the Coalition of the Willing – as “they are the guarantors” and would be affected by anything that changes the security of Europe.