The Ukrainian leader was set to meet EU chief Ursula von der Leyen, Nato chief Mark Rutte, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer for “intensive discussions on security guarantees for Ukraine,” Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to the head of Zelensky’s office, wrote on social media today.

The issue of Western-backed security guarantees for Ukraine has dominated diplomatic efforts to end the war in recent weeks.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Starmer, who will jointly chair the talks, are heading up a “coalition of the willing”, seeking to come up with robust European proposals for how to protect Ukraine from a future Russian attack, should an elusive peace deal be struck.

Kyiv is pressing for a European peacekeeping force and Nato-style defence guarantees, if membership of the alliance is off the table.

Russia has long said it would never tolerate the presence of any Western troops in Ukraine.