Trump has promised to push for peace talks in Ukraine within six months but has criticized Europe's lack of defense spending.

From Nigel Farage to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, EU politicians are competing for the privilege of being Europe’s Trump whisperer.

French President Emmanuel Macron warned on Monday that the billions of euros of taxpayer money spent on Europe's military budgets should not be used to buy only American weapons, pushing for more investment in home-grown defence industries.

The French President called on Europe to spend more on defence to reduce their reliance on the United States for security.

Frederiksen was meeting on Tuesday with European leaders including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Donald Trump criticized Volodymyr Zelensky in his first interview after returning to the White House, saying he "shouldn't have allowed this war to happen."

An Ifop poll for Le Journal du Dimanche published last weekend suggested a mere 21 per cent of French voters were happy with his presidency, his lowest approval rating since he first took office seven years ago and the second-lowest in modern French history after Francois Hollande, his Socialist predecessor.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday warned that Russia's war against Ukraine would not end "tomorrow or the day after" as Donald Trump, who pledged to quickly wind up the conflict, returned to the White House.

The city of Paris has quit the platform X over concerns about disinformation and hate speech. The PR account's exit comes at the same time as French President Emmanuel Macron is pushing for X owner Elon Musk and United States President-elect Donald Trump to attend Paris' flagship artificial intelligence summit next month.

Donald Trump has broken with tradition and invited foreign politicians to his swearing-in, including conservative and far-right figures such as Italy's Giorgia Meloni, Argentina's Javier Milei and French MEP Marion Maréchal.

Weak, distracted and unprepared? How prepared France, Germany and the rest of the continent really are for his return to power

French president Emmanuel Macron has called on Europe to “wake up” and spend more on defence, in a speech to the French military as Donald Trump returns to power. Mr Macron referred to expected changes in Washington’s foreign policies especially regarding the war in Ukraine and said this is an “opportunity for a European strategic wake-up call”.