Lord Mandelson has been rebuked after saying Ukraine should be the first side to “commit to a ceasefire” in its war with Russia, as he called on Volodymyr Zelenskyy to back Donald Trump’s minerals deal.
The UK ambassador to the US said Zelenskyy needs to “get back on the same page” with Trump after he left the White House on Friday following an extraordinary shouting match.
Commenting on the Oval Office press conference, Lord Mandelson told ABC News a “very radical reset” was needed.
The New Labour grandee said: “We need a very radical reset. The reset has to consist of the US and Ukraine getting back on the same page.
“And president Zelensky giving his unequivocal backing to the initiative that president Trump is taking to end the war and to bring a just and lasting peace to Ukraine.
“And the Europeans too need to back the calls for a ceasefire. And by the way, I think that Ukraine should be the first to commit to a ceasefire and defy the Russians to follow.”
The X account Rapid Response 47, which communicates US administration policy and insists it holds “Fake News accountable”, shared the comments over the weekend.
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Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey accused Lord Mandelson of muddying the government’s position.
He wrote on X: “What is Mandelson up to? You cannot square what the prime minister said this morning with this. What is the government’s actual position?
“Our man in DC should be securing US protection for our brave Ukrainian allies, not telling president Zelensky what to do.”
Speaking to ABC News, Mandelson added: “After what happened on Friday it’s clear that we need to bring the US and Ukraine back together again.
“I think the first thing that president Zelenskyy can do is make clear his commitment to the initiative that president Trump is taking and yes, I do think it would be a good idea if he signed the economic and commercial deal put forward by the US.
“Quite apart from the economic gain that Ukraine will derive from that it will also give the US a stake in Ukraine’s future.
“It will mean that US commercial interests, US individual citizens will be on the ground there. That will be an even greater, added incentive for the US to protect Ukraine in future and make sure war does not ensue again. That’s what I want to see. That’s what we all want to see.”
Asked whether Lord Mandelson’s position was now government policy, defence minister Luke Pollard said: “No. It’s certainly right that of all the people on our continent who want peace, the Ukrainians want it the most.
“But we’re still in discussions, diplomatic engagement, with our European, US and Ukrainian friends as to the shape of our deal.”
He told Sky News: “It’s certainly right that the war could stop tomorrow if president Putin stopped his illegal and unprovoked aggression. He could stop this war so what we need to find is a formula that allows a peace that is lasting and durable to be created, and then to be defended.”
Asked if Lord Mandelson misspoke, Pollard added: “That’s not government policy, and you wouldn’t ask me to commentate on every up and down in the negotiations. But we are seeking to find that lasting peace.”
Former foreign secretary James Cleverly posted to X: “The UK ambassador to Washington isn’t meant to communicate his own opinion, he is meant to communicate the UK government opinion.
“[Foreign secretary David] Lammy and [prime minister Keir] Starmer need to grip this.”
Josh Self is Editor of Politics.co.uk, follow him on Bluesky here.
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