
EU President Ursula von der Leyen vowed on Wednesday that Europe would continue to support Ukraine and put pressure on Russia until a "just and lasting peace," calling the revised U.S. plan a "starting point" to end the war.
"I want to be clear from the start: Europe will stand with Ukraine and will support Ukraine every step of the way," von der Leyen told EU lawmakers.
Europe has tried to support Kiev and exert its influence after the United States drew up a plan to end the fighting that was heavily biased towards Russia's demands.
The European Commission president said days of negotiations to refine the US plan had begun to lay the groundwork for a possible solution, but warned that Russia showed no signs of truly wanting to stop the war.
"Yes, the situation is unstable. Yes, the situation is dangerous. But I believe there is also an opportunity here to make real progress," she said.
As the United States has stepped up efforts to stop the fighting, the EU is debating proposals to use frozen Russian assets to finance a 140 billion euro ($162 billion) loan to Kiev.