BRUSSELS - However Donald Trump’s latest push to end the war in Ukraine pans out, Europe fears the prospect of a deal – sooner or later – that will not punish or weaken Russia as its leaders had hoped, placing the continent’s security in greater jeopardy.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was expected to miss Wednesday's meeting, which will unfold during high-stakes negotiations in Moscow and in Europe about Ukraine’s future.

The remarks came even as US envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner reached Moscow for a meeting with Putin on Tuesday.

LONDON -- The White House said it's is "very optimistic" ahead of special envoy Steve Witkoff's meeting in Moscow on Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as U.S. officials continue their push to end Russia's war against Ukraine.

Witkoff and Kushner meet Putin in the KremlinUshakov, Dmitriev and interpreters also present Putin warns Europe: if you want war, then we can fightTrump administration proposes draft Ukraine peace ideas Putin dismisses European proposals on Ukraine Russian President Vladimir Putin met U.

Other differences include European leaders proposing Russia giving the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which would split power 50-50 between Moscow and Kyiv. Ukraine’s army would also be capped during peacetime at 800,000 soldiers, 200,000 more than in the American version.

As President Trump pushes Ukraine to accept a Russian landgrab in exchange for peace, a wounded soldier asks, "How much more can we give?"

European leaders are hoping to bolster the controversial plan, which Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy said was forcing his country to choose between "dignity" and a "key partner."

European leaders were blindsided by President Trump’s 28-point-plan to end the Ukraine war, setting off a dash for influence.

The deployment of European peacekeepers to Ukraine should be a “fundamental” part of any deal to end the war with Russia, a senior adviser in Volodymyr Zelenskiy ’s office has said in advance of the Ukrainian president’s visit to Ireland.