Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed three years of "resistance" and "heroism" on the anniversary of the Russian invasion in 2022.

"Three years of resistance. Three years of gratitude. Three years of absolute heroism of Ukrainians," Zelensky said in a social media post, as quoted by AFP.

"This is one of Ukraine's most significant anniversaries: thank you to everyone who defends and supports it," he added.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Antonio Costa and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrived in Kiev by train for the summit, which Zelensky said would bring together 13 leaders as well as 24 others via videoconference.

"It is not only the fate of Ukraine that is at stake in this struggle for survival. It is the fate of Europe," von der Leyen wrote in a social media message.

Faced with the Russian threat and Washington's shifting position, weakened Europeans are trying to mobilise. Costa announced a special European summit on March 6.

The leader of the German Christian Democrats, Friedrich Merz, who won the parliamentary elections on 23 February and has every chance of becoming the next chancellor, immediately declared the creation of an "autonomous European defence capability" an "absolute priority" as an alternative to "NATO in its current form".

Having acceded to the Russian position that Ukraine was responsible for the outbreak of the conflict on 24 February 2022, and having entered into negotiations with Moscow without Ukrainian or European involvement, US President Donald Trump has insisted on his willingness to restore the amount of aid provided since that date by gaining access to Ukrainian mining resources.

Zelensky ruled out signing a text for which "ten generations of Ukrainians" would have to pay.

Trump also described Zelensky, who was elected in 2019 to a five-year term but remains in power due to an inability to organize a vote in the midst of war, as a "dictator without elections." The Ukrainian president said he was "not offended" by these remarks because he was a "legitimately elected president."

Washington is also preparing a summit between Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and has ruled that Ukraine's NATO membership is unrealistic.

This American reversal after three years of uninterrupted military support has stunned many Ukrainians, who fear their country will be forced to accept territorial concessions in exchange for a ceasefire.

Demonstrations in support of Ukraine have already taken place in Paris, Prague, Vilnius, outside the Russian embassy in Washington and in several other American cities. Other rallies are planned for today, including in London, Sydney and Sofia.

For its part, Russia is not hiding its satisfaction at Donald Trump breaking the isolation of Vladimir Putin, which the West is seeking, and starting bilateral talks.

"The dialogue is taking place between two truly remarkable presidents. It is promising. It is important that nothing stands in the way of the implementation of their political will," Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.

Moscow announced that a new meeting of Russian and US diplomats would take place at the end of the week, following the meeting of foreign ministers Sergei Lavrov and Marco Rubio in Saudi Arabia on February 18.

In a move fraught with insinuations, the Americans proposed to the UN General Assembly a draft resolution that makes no mention of Ukraine's territorial integrity. This at a time when UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for a 'just' peace that respects this 'territorial integrity'. | BGNES