BRUSSELS — NATO foreign ministers met in Brussels on Tuesday amid growing unease over a draft peace plan to end the war in Ukraine and concern that U.S.-led diplomacy with Moscow could sideline the alliance.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told reporters that only U.S. President Donald Trump, he believed, might be able to break the current deadlock over the conflict — a remark reflecting frustration among some allies about the slow pace and informal channels of negotiations.
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“The peace talks are ongoing, that’s good, but at the same time we have to make sure that whilst they take place — and we are not sure when they will end — that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position to keep the fight going,” Rutte said, stressing the need to sustain military support for Kyiv as diplomacy continues.
Allies at the meeting highlighted progress on a NATO-coordinated equipment list known as the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, or PURL. Rutte said roughly two‑thirds of NATO members have committed weapons and supplies against PURL requirements, amounting to more than $4 billion in pledges so far. He added that Australia and New Zealand will become the first non‑North Atlantic partners to contribute to the list.
Ministers also expressed skepticism about the initial 28‑point plan that has circulated publicly and been widely criticized by Western governments as reflecting Russian priorities. The plan reportedly calls for Ukraine to pledge never to join NATO and for a halt to new NATO membership among eastern European states — provisions many allies have rejected.
“President Putin should end the bluster and the bloodshed and be ready to come to the table and to support a just and lasting peace for Ukraine,” British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told reporters after the session. Cooper and others said there was little evidence so far that Russian negotiators were prepared to make the concessions required for a durable settlement.
Finland’s Elina Valtonen warned against taking Russian rhetoric at face value after President Vladimir Putin said he did not want conflict with Europe but was “ready” for war. “It’s the rhetoric that Russia is making use of in order to intimidate us, and we shouldn’t take such talks too seriously,” she said. “We have very strong capabilities as NATO, as Europe, and we are ramping up by the day.”
The meeting followed a high‑profile visit to Moscow by a U.S. delegation that included private envoys linked to former President Trump. The delegation held five hours of talks with Putin and senior Russian officials; while Russian officials described the discussions as productive, NATO ministers said no breakthrough had emerged.
There was also attention paid to the absence from Brussels of Senator Marco Rubio, a vocal U.S. critic of Russia, though Rutte said Rubio’s schedule was heavy and urged against reading political signal into the absence.
The NATO session coincided with a speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Ireland’s parliament, where he received a standing ovation and warned there is a “real chance” for peace if the international community seizes it. NATO allies say their priority is to keep Ukraine militarily and diplomatically strong while talks — and uncertainty over any Russian willingness to compromise — continue.
Additional reporting Tony Connelly
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
