According to a transcript obtained by the German outlet, Europe rallied around Volodymyr Zelenskyy and sharply criticized Washington.
December 4, 2025
By Seb Starcevic, Ferdinand Knapp, Hans von der Burchard and Veronika Melkozerova
POLITICO
French President Emmanuel Macron warned the U.S. could be about to “betray” Ukraine, according to a leaked transcript of a call between European leaders strategizing about how to protect Kyiv.
The details of the phone call — which took place Monday and involved Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and others — were published by German magazine Der Spiegel and saw the leaders discussing U.S.-led peace negotiations with Kyiv and Moscow.
“There is a possibility that the U.S. will betray Ukraine on the issue of territory without clarity on security guarantees,” Macron said, according to Spiegel, adding there was “a great danger” for Zelenskyy.
When asked about the report, an Elysée official, granted anonymity to adhere to standard professional protocol in France, stressed that Macron’s office released its own summary of the exchange “in which this word [betray] does not figure.” The official added that Macron’s position on peace talks is “no different in private” than what he states publicly.
A spokesperson for the French foreign ministry said: “Exchanges with our U.S. counterparts are particularly rich. You no doubt saw that the French president received the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Elysée Palace Monday, and immediately afterwards he debriefed negotiators in Florida and of course President Donald Trump.”
Merz chimed in that Zelenskyy had to be “extremely careful in the coming days.”
“They are playing games, both with you and with us,” Merz said, seemingly referring to Washington’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — the son-in-law of American President Donald Trump — who spent five hours locked in talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Tuesday.
Merz’s spokesperson Stefan Kornelius told POLITICO: “As a matter of principle, I do not confirm or comment on snippets of conversation.”
Finland’s Stubb seemed to agree with Merz, according to the transcript. “We cannot leave Ukraine and Volodymyr alone with these guys,” he said, apparently referring to Witkoff and Kushner, which attracted agreement from Rutte.
“I agree with Alexander — we must protect Volodymyr [Zelenskyy],” the NATO chief said. NATO declined to comment when reached by POLITICO.
“We consider it incorrect to publish any alleged transcripts of the leaders’ conversations, which could harm the diplomatic process — we neither confirm nor deny any of the above,” a Ukrainian diplomat told POLITICO granted anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.
“In general, only the Russians benefit from any splits between Europe and America, so our consistent position is that transatlantic unity must be maintained,” the diplomat added. Zelenskyy’s office declined to comment.
The call took place after the Trump administration circulated a 28-point peace plan — reportedly drafted by the Kremlin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev, Witkoff and Kushner — that was criticized by Ukraine and European allies for being too favorable to Russia, and triggered frenzied negotiations in Geneva.
Those subsequent talks, attended by European, Ukrainian and American officials, yielded an updated 19-point plan, which Russia has yet to agree to. Moscow has not backed down from its maximalist demands, namely that Kyiv give up vast swathes of unoccupied territory in its east, limit the size of its military and hold new elections.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and European Council President António Costa also participated in Monday’s call, according to Spiegel.
The call also saw the issue of Russia’s frozen assets discussed, Spiegel reported, with some leaders insisting that seizing Moscow’s billions to fund a massive tranche of financial and military aid for Ukraine was a matter for the EU to decide, not the U.S.
Victor Jack, Clea Caulcutt and Joshua Berlinger contributed reporting.