The Lines are Drawn

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and France’s President Emmanuel Macron attend a press conference following the Coalition of the Willing Summit, at the Elysee presidential Palace, in Paris, France on September 4, 2025. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS

You can’t ignore the imagery.

Today, the Coalition of the Willing, all the nations that have agreed to support Ukraine in its war against Russia, met in Paris today with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to align interests, iron out security guarantees, and chart a path forward.

One day after, a few miles to the East, Russian President Vladimir Putin was in China, standing shoulder to shoulder with President Xi of China and Supreme Leader Kim Jung Un of North Korea. The proverbial lines are being drawn, and optically, you’re either on one side or the other.

WATCH: President Trump accuses China, Russia and North Korea of “conspiring” against the U.S.

President Trump joined today’s call with the Coalition of the Willing. According to reporting by colleague Libbey Dean, he told European nations to stop purchasing Russian oil and to put economic pressure on China.

According to President Emmanuel Macron of France, 26 countries have agreed to security guarantees for Ukraine. “To deploy as a reassurance force troops in Ukraine or to be present on the ground, at sea, in air, in order to bring this reassurance to the Ukrainian territory and to Ukraine the day after a ceasefire or peace,” Macron said.

The big question is the United States. Boots on the ground are an absolute no-go, according to President Trump. Yet the President, according to other world leaders, showed an interest in offering support. 

One option that appears to be on the table is whether the United States will help protect Ukraine’s skies.

“We are considering a certain format. Yesterday, Emmanuel and I spoke in detail about it – it was the first time we discussed such a format. Today, we shared it with our partners, and afterward with President Trump,” President Zelenskyy said. “If we receive a positive signal from the United States, since technically much in this format of air defense depends on them — if we receive that positive signal, we will be glad to share this information.”

The leaders said they expected the United States’ commitments to be ironed out in a few days.

In Moscow, however, none of this is being received positively. They have said repeatedly that Western troops on the ground is not something they will tolerate, and insist they want a say in negotiating Ukraine’s security guarantees.

Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Thursday that the protections under discussion "are not security guarantees for Ukraine, they are guarantees of threat to the European continent."

Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that Russia does not oppose Ukraine joining the European Union to advance its own economic interests, but NATO membership remains a non-starter.

In terms of the possibility of a bilateral between Russia and Ukraine, the Russian leader said he told President Trump in Alaska, “Yes, it was possible, let him come to Moscow.”

Ukraine quickly nixed that idea.

More dialogue between the White House and Kremlin is expected to take place, as President Trump keeps his cards close to the vest on whether or not he will put more pressure on Russia. 

“If we’re unhappy about it, you’ll see things happen,” he said.

As an aside, we are now less than two months away from my first book, "Lessons From the Front" hitting shelves. October 30 is the big day, and the countdown is on. Thank you to everyone who has pre-ordered already. For those still interested in doing so, you can place your order through Amazon, Barnes and Noble or Bloomsbury.