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Sir John Major has accused Donald Trump of “cuddling” up to Vladimir Putin as he warned that “tin-pot” dictators around the world would be emboldened if the US agrees on a deal that leaves Russia in control of Ukrainian territory.
As Keir Starmer prepares for a crisis summit on Ukraine in Paris, a member of his cabinet also warned the US president any agreement would not last if Europe is, as expected, excluded from the talks.
World leaders continue to reel from Mr Trump’s announcement during the week that he and Mr Putin are to begin negotiations to end the war, triggered when Russia invaded Ukraine nearly three years ago.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has called for the creation of a European army if the US cannot be relied on to help guarantee the continent’s security – and warned there is a “100 per cent chance” Russia will occupy other European nations if the US pulls out of Nato.
Sir John warned a world in which the US does not support its allies will be “rather more dangerous”.
And he suggested if a “very aggressive” Russia was to “succeed in their adventure in Ukraine, no doubt they would be elsewhere before too long”.
A retreat by the US “towards isolation” would also leave the door open for China and Russia, he said.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that the world is changing and that it’s reshaping, that it may not be reshaping in a way that’s congenial to the West and that it’s a very unsettled time indeed,” Sir John said.
He also hit out at a rant by Mr Trump’s deputy JD Vance on Friday, saying: “It’s extremely odd to lecture Europe on the subject of free speech and democracy at the same time as they’re cuddling Mr Putin.”
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s The World This Weekend, he said the Republicans “made concessions to Russia, which I think is fairly unprecedented, having made perfectly clear that the US troops would not defend Ukraine, that Russia might be able to keep land that Putin had taken by force [and] that Ukraine would not be able to join Nato”.
He warned: “Consider what happens if Russia can claim a win: China is going to notice that, and so will the world, and so will every tin-pot dictator around the world.
“If America is not to stand behind its allies in the way the world has previously seen, then we are moving into a wholly different and, in my view, rather more dangerous world.”
Earlier, business secretary Jonathan Reynolds warned any peace settlement would not be “durable” without the participation of European countries.
He also acknowledged that Sir Keir’s plan to act as a bridge between Mr Trump and Europe on Ukraine was “not going to be easy”.
Mr Trump’s team has made clear Europe should not expect to be included in any talks to end the war.
France is preparing to host the emergency meeting with Nato secretary general Mark Rutte.
European diplomatic sources said that among those invited were Britain, Germany, Poland, Italy and Denmark, which would represent Scandinavian countries, as well as the EU.
Ahead of the summit, Sir Keir said: “This is a once-in-a-generation moment for our national security where we engage with the reality of the world today and the threat we face from Russia.
“It’s clear Europe must take on a greater role in Nato as we work with the United States to secure Ukraine’s future and face down the threat we face from Russia.
“The UK will work to ensure we keep the US and Europe together. We cannot allow any divisions in the alliance to distract from the external enemies we face.”
The prime minister will take the messages from this meeting on the way forward on Ukraine to Washington DC the following week to discuss at a meeting with Mr Trump.
