None of them had any faith in the prospects of the success of a suggested one-month ceasefire, either.

Following Sunday's London summit, French President Emmanuel Macron proposed that European countries up their defense spending to around 3 percent of GDP per year.

Macron also proposed a one-month ceasefire in Ukraine, which would include a cessation of attacks on energy infrastructure and military actions at sea and in the air, by both sides, but would not require the end of ground fighting in the eastern theater.

Kristi Raik, director of the Tallinn-based International Center for Defense and Security (ICDS), said that the U.K. is not fully on board with the Macron proposal. "While Ukraine remains firmly of the view that before any ceasefire can be talked about, there must first be clarity on how it would be enforced," Raik told "Aktuaalne kaamera."

Security expert Rainer Saks also thought Macron's proposal is unrealistic. "In a scenario of full-scale war, expecting both sides to simply agree not to use one type of weapon is never going to work out," he said.

Last week's breakdown in direct communication between the Americans and Ukrainians clearly demonstrated that nothing decisive can be achieved without European involvement, he added.

France, the U.K., and Ukraine are now attempting to develop a roadmap for ending the war, which will later be presented to the U.S.

However, no concrete ideas have emerged yet.

Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur (Reform) said that many obstacles remain.
He said: "However, these obstacles are precisely the same in negotiations between the U.S. and Russia, so nothing about this will be easy."

"The fact is that if the Western allies want to guarantee peace in Ukraine in the future — and Ukraine needs that peace be guaranteed — then all parties must sit down at the table. The Americans and the Ukrainians must also be ready to put aside any grievances, and discuss things as they really are," Pevkur went on.

Ukraine must also have a strong position in negotiations, which can only be achieved from success on the battlefield; and in turn, to achieve this, sufficient military aid is essential, Raik said. "For Russia to have a reason to come to the negotiating table, the balance of power must shift significantly in Ukraine's favor."

Macron, Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy all visited the White House last week, on consecutive days. While the first two meetings were largely cordial, but had their moments, including Macron fact-checking U.S. President Donald Trump, Friday's to-camera berating of Zelenskyy by Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance attracted the most fallout.

In any case, according to Raik, it is unclear whether the plans, which were later revealed after the London summit, had already been discussed with Trump behind closed doors last week.

The idea of a one-month ceasefire may have stemmed from Trump's desire to wrap up the war quickly, she added.

Later on Monday evening, reports emerged that Trump was putting a pause on all military aid to Ukraine.

Trump may want to pivot away from Europe, Ukraine, and Russia in order to focus the bulk of his foreign policy and trade attention on China.

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