Negotiations over the war in Ukraine could start 'in the winter,' Poland's leader Tusk says

WARSAW, Poland — Poland's prime minister said Tuesday that negotiations over Russia's war in neighboring Ukraine could start ''in the winter,'' as his country prepares to take over the rotating presidency of the European Union on Jan. 1.

''Our presidency will have, among others, joint responsibility for the shape of the political landscape, for what the situation will look like probably during the negotiations that, perhaps — there are still question marks here — will begin in the winter of this year,'' Prime Minister Donald Tusk told his Cabinet.

He said he hoped that the ''end effect'' of Poland's and the EU's efforts will be peace in Ukraine.

He offered no details of the efforts or any time frame. He didn't say who might be involved in the negotiations or where or when they might take place.

Poland has been one of Ukraine's strongest backers against Russia's full-scale invasion, which began on Feb. 24, 2022. Poland will assume the EU presidency just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump takes office in the U.S.

Trump has been pushing for an end to the war in Ukraine and during his campaign said that he could settle the matter in a day if he were elected.

In a television interview that aired Sunday, Trump also said he would be open to reducing military aid to Ukraine and pulling the United States out of NATO. Those are two threats that have alarmed Ukraine, NATO allies and many in the U.S. national security community.

Tusk said that he would be holding numerous meetings with political leaders concerning the situation relating to the war in Ukraine.

Later Tuesday, he was meeting with Friedrich Merz, the head of Germany's CDU party, who was returning from talks in Kyiv with the Ukrainian government. Tusk will also speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

French President Emmanuel Macron is expected in Warsaw on Thursday, and Tusk said they will talk about meetings Macron recently held in Paris with Trump and Zelenskyy.

Tusk said that Poland was taking the six-month EU presidency during a ''very dramatic'' situation for the continent. Last week, he pointed to armed conflicts, also in Europe's vicinity, political crises some of Europe's biggest countries are going through and to the change in U.S. leadership.

''I would like it very much for Poland to be the country that will not only mark its presence all the time, but will also set the tone of the decisions that are to bring us security and safeguard Poland's interests,'' Tusk told a government meeting.