Ukraine: NATO defense chiefs talk security guarantees

US Vice President JD Vance said that the expectation would be for European countries to take the "lion's share" of the burden of Ukraine's security guarantees.

"I don't think we should carry the burden here. I think that we should be helpful if it's necessary to stop the war and to stop the killing. But I think that we should expect, and the president certainly expects, Europe to play the leading role here," Vance told Fox News.

"No matter what form this takes, the Europeans are going to have to take the lion's share of the burden. It's their continent, it's their security, and the President has been very clear they're going to have to step up," Vance said.

Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told DW that Germany would welcome China taking a more active role in the peace process in Ukraine.

Wadephul cautioned that Beijing had not appeared interested in such a role, despite explicit appeals from Berlin and other countries.

"Hardly any other country, any other government, has such a strong influence on Russia as China. Unfortunately, China hasn't used its opportunities so far, but it is never too late," Wadephul said in an interview with DW's Rosalia Romaniec.

Read the full interview here.

Poland's Defense Minister has condemned "a provocation by the Russian Federation" after police found a crashed drone in a corn field in the east of the country.

"We are dealing in a crucial moment, when discussions about peace (in Ukraine) are underway," Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

The Polish Foreign Ministry said initial findings indicated the drone was a Russian-made version of the Shahed drone.

Click here to read DW's full coverage of reported Russian drone crash in Poland.

The video conference on Ukraine, held by NATO military leaders, was "great" and "candid," according to Admiral Giuseppe Cavo
Dragone, the head of the NATO Military Committee. 

"On Ukraine, we confirmed our support. Priority continues to be a just, credible and durable peace," the Italian admiral said in an online post, without providing details.

After an object crashed the east of Poland overnight, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pawel Wronski told the Reuters news agency that early findings indicated this object was a Russian Shahed drone. 

Russia is using the Iranian-developed drones for its war in Ukraine, which borders Poland.

The object hit a cornfield and exploded near the village of Osiny in eastern Poland which is only 100 kilometres (62 miles) from the capital Warsaw.

There were no casualties but some windows were blown out in nearby buildings.

Poland's Armed Forces Operational Command took to social media on Wednesday to say no violations of Polish airspace from neighboring Ukraine or Belarus had been registered.

Lublin District Prosecutor Grzegorz Trusiewicz told reporters both civilian and military were at the crash site.

"We have a lot of manpower, we have the army to help us. I hope that we will be able to finish the operation by the evening," Trusiewicz said.

Pope Leo XIV has asked followers to fast on Friday in order to pray for peace and justice in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Wednesday marked Leo's first day back at Vaticanafter a period of vacation at the papal summer retreat in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome.

He urged Catholic Christians to fast whilst "praying that the Lord grants peace and justice, and dries the tears of all those who are suffering as a result of the armed conflicts underway."

Since succeeding Pope Francis on May 8 this year, Leo has continuously called for peace talks and ceasefires in Gaza and Ukraine.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow "cannot agree" to plans to solve international security issues without Russia.

Speaking to reporters, Lavrov sent out a warning that "seriously discussing security guarantees without the Russian Federation is a utopia, a road to nowhere."

 NATO defense leaders are meeting on Wednesday to discuss  security guarantees for Ukraine that they hope could bring about the end of the war.

After Donald Trump met his Russia's Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week, the US president also met with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Monday. 

Western leaders, including Germany's Friedrich Merz, said Putin and Zelenskyy will hold direct talks. Following Monday's meeting, Trump spoke with Putin on the phone but Lavrov said that the Russian leader had only said he would "think about raising the level of" talks on Ukraine.

Any summit between Putin and Zelensky "must be prepared in the most meticulous way" so the meeting does not lead to a "deterioration" of the situation, according to Lavrov.

Moscow has maintained its stance that it will not tolerate Kyiv becoming a part of NATO and remained hostile to the idea of Western troops being deployed to Ukraine in any capacity.

Lavrov has accused European leaders, many of whom accompanied Zelenskyy to the White House on Monday. of trying to change the US president's position on Ukraine.

"We have only seen aggressive escalation of the situation and rather clumsy attempts to change the position of the US president," he said. "We did not hear any constructive ideas from the Europeans there."

NATO military chiefs are set to hold a virtual meeting on Wednesday as Europe seeks to determine possible future security guarantees for Ukraine.

The proposals could help create the foundations of a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. 

Italian Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, chair of NATO's Military Committee, said on Tuesday that 32 defense chiefs from across the alliance would hold a video conference, and that US Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's supreme allied commander Europe, would also participate.

The meeting comes after US President Donald Trump hosted his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Alaska, and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House over recent days. 

Prominent European leaders, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, were present with Zelenskyy on Monday.

With Trump pushing for a settlement between Ukraine and Russia, Kyiv has demands for Western-backed military assurances to ensure the Kremlin won't mount another invasion.

"We need strong security guarantees to ensure a truly secure and lasting peace," Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post on Wednesday.

Kyiv's European allies are looking to set up a force that could backstop any peace agreement, and a coalition of 30 countries, including European nations, Japan and Australia, have signed up to support the initiative.

The role the US would play remains unclear, with Trump saying on Tuesday he would not send US troops to help defend Ukraine on the ground. Russia has maintained it would not accept NATO troops in Ukraine.

German soldiers are expected to be sent for peacekeeping in the event of a permanent ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, a German politician has said.

In an interview on Wednesday, Thomas Röwekamp, the chairman of the Defence Committee in the Bundestag, expressed that both Europeans and Ukrainians have had poor experiences with Russian commitments.

Röwekamp told the WDR broadcaster that this was the main reason why effective military deterrence is needed.

"That also means that German soldiers will ensure in future, after a peace agreement with Russia, that peace is maintained permanently," he said.

Providing examples of the types of support the Bundeswehr could provide, Röwekamp pointed towards logistics, as well as training Ukrainian soldiers. 

"There is a whole range of military capabilities that we have in the Bundeswehr [military] that can permanently secure peace in Ukraine," the committee chairman added.

"It is a matter of giving Ukraine a binding assurance, including military assurance, that in the event of a renewed attack by Russia, the Europeans, together with American troops, are prepared to repel an attack," he said. "The safest way to prevent another military confrontation would be to deter the Russian army from such a war with a strong troop presence."

Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics said he wants the defenses along the country's borders with Russia and Belarus to be built-up faster.

Rinkevics has cited security risks following Moscow's war in Ukraine, as he visited the front line near Zaborje in military uniform.

The Latvian leader was told of plans for fences, concrete barriers, and anti-tank obstacles as he visited with Latvia's military chief, Kaspars Pudans, and border guard head Guntis Pujats. 

Rinkevics said the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has shown his country needs to be prepared for anything in the future.

The border has undergone significant transformation in recent years, but further improvements are needed, including the installation of concrete and anti-tank barriers, according to the president.

The barriers are part of a joint Baltic defense line with Estonia and Lithuania, designed to deter potential Russian aggression and are aligned with NATO defense plans for the region.

Latvia intends to invest about €300 million ($349 million) between 2024 and 2028 to reinforce the 400-kilometer (248-mile) border. 

As the possibility of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin holding face-to-face talks grows, European military chiefs are seeking ways to guarantee the continent's safety.

For NATO's defense leaders, a peacekeeping force is believed to be the best way to ensure Russia does not attempt to invade Ukraine again in the future.

Despite the renewed belief that a ceasefire could be achieved, Russia has continued to bombard Ukraine, with a gas distribution station in the southern Ukrainian region of Odesa having been struck on Wednesday. Russia also said it shot down dozens of Ukrainian drones overnight.