Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday that the time has come for the creation of an “armed forces of Europe,” because the U.S. may no longer be counted on to support the continent. Meanwhile, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hit back at Americans for meddling in his country’s election after U.S. Vice President JD Vance scolded European leaders over their approach to democracy and met with the leader of a German far-right party. Forceful speeches from Zelenskyy and Scholz on Day 2 of the Munich Security Conference underlined the impact of a blizzard of decisions by U.S. President Donald Trump that show a rapidly growing chasm in trans-Atlantic ties. European leaders are reeling after Trump’s decision to upend years of U.S. policy by holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in hopes of ending the Russia-Ukraine war. Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia on Saturday all but ruled out that Europeans would be included in any Ukraine peace talks. Ramping up his desire for a more muscular Europe, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine’s nearly three-year fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion has proved that a foundation exists for the creation of a European army — an idea long discussed among some leaders on the continent. “I really believe that time has come,” he said. “The armed forces of Europe must be created.” It’s unclear whether the idea will catch on with European leaders. Zelenskyy has sought greater military and economic support from the European Union for years and repeatedly warned that other parts of Europe could be vulnerable to Russia’s expansionist ambitions. While the bloc — along with the United States — has been one of Kyiv’s strongest backers, pockets of political disagreement over its approach to Moscow and economic realities, including national debt levels that have crimped defense spending, have stood in the way of greater support. Zelenskyy also told The Associated Press on Saturday that he “didn’t let” his ministers sign an agreement with the U.S. on the extraction of minerals in the country, because “it is not ready to protect us, our interest.” Ukraine is hoping to offer rare earth elements essential for many kinds of technology in exchange for continued military aid. Earlier, Zelenskyy alluded to a phone conversation between Trump and Putin this week, after which Trump said that he and Putin would likely meet soon to negotiate a peace deal over Ukraine — breaking with the Biden administration’s harder line against Moscow over Russia’s all-out assault on Ukraine, which began on Feb. 24, 2022. Russia’s Foreign Ministry and the U.S. State Department said Saturday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken by phone. Rubio reaffirmed Trump’s “commitment to finding an end to the conflict in Ukraine. In addition, they discussed the opportunity to potentially work together on a number of other bilateral issues,” U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said. Trump previously assured Zelenskyy that he would have a seat at the table to end the war, and the Ukrainian leader insisted that Europe should also have one. “Ukraine will never accept deals made behind our backs without our involvement, and the same rule should apply to all of Europe,” Zelenskyy said, adding that “not once did (Trump) mention that America needs Europe at the table.” “That says […]