Following a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, peace talks are now underway in Saudi Arabia between a Russian delegation led by top diplomat Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. This, along with a series of other diplomatic manoeuvres, indicates that both the United States and Russia are serious about negotiating a ceasefire and striking a deal in what has been a devastating war—particularly for Ukraine. Despite reservations on both sides, such dialogue must continue, and any efforts to engage in direct negotiations should always be encouraged.
However, the more striking aspect of this development is the complete sidelining of both Europe and Ukraine in these discussions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has not hidden his frustration over his country’s exclusion from the process, and European leaders have also voiced their concerns. This has come as a rude awakening for many in Europe who had viewed themselves as equal partners with the United States within NATO. After years of unwavering military and financial support for Ukraine—largely at Washington’s urging—many European leaders expected to have a decisive role in shaping the outcome of this conflict.
Yet, as the composition of the negotiating table now makes clear, this war was never truly about Ukraine or the protection of Europe. It was, at its core, a proxy conflict in which the United States used Ukraine as a battleground to drain Russian military strength, weaken its economy, and erode its political standing. Now that Russia has gained the upper hand—steadily grinding down Ukrainian forces mile by mile—it is Washington and Moscow, not Kyiv or Brussels, that are shaping the terms of peace.
At some point, symbolic roles may be offered to European leaders, and Zelensky himself will inevitably have to sign off on any agreement. But the real power lies where it always has, and the rest is little more than optics. Perhaps, at long last, Europe will begin to grasp the reality that within NATO, it is not an equal partner but a subordinate to the true military superpower that dictates the alliance’s course.
