European leaders on Saturday mobilised to force their way to the table at any talks on the Ukraine war, as Washington announced a team of senior US officials was planning to meet in Saudi Arabia with counterparts from Moscow and Kiev.

Trump upended the status quo this week when he announced he was likely to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin soon to start talks to end the conflict, leaving US allies in Europe reeling from concerns that their interests would be sidelined in any deal on Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff will head to Saudi Arabia for ceasefire talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, US officials said on Saturday, without giving details on when the meeting would happen.

Rubio had already been due to visit Saudi Arabia as part his first tour of the Middle East, which began on Saturday when he arrived in Israel.

The top US diplomat also had a call on Saturday with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, in which he "reaffirmed President Trump's commitment to finding an end to the conflict in Ukraine," spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.

In Munich, Nato chief Mark Rutte said Europe had to come up with "good proposals" for securing peace in Ukraine if it wanted to be involved in US-led talks.

"If Europeans want to have a say, make yourself relevant," Rutte told journalists at a gathering of top policymakers.

Rutte also said he would head to Paris on Monday to take part in a meeting of European leaders convened by French President Emmanuel Macron.

The gathering would focus on defence spending and planning so that "when a deal is reached in Ukraine, that we have absolute clarity what Europe can contribute," he said.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Europe "must take on a greater role in Nato" and work with the United States to "secure Ukraine's future".

In a statement, Starmer 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 Russi

As part of any eventual "security guarantees" for Ukraine, talks have begun in Europe over a potential deployment of peacekeepers.

But those discussions are at an embryonic stage -- and others argue the focus needs to be on building up Ukraine's own forces.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for the creation of a European army, arguing the continent could no longer count on Washington.

"We can't rule out the possibility that America might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it," Zelensky said.

"I really believe that time has come. The Armed Forces of Europe must be created."

The push for a joint continental force has been mooted for years without gaining traction and Zelensky's intervention seems unlikely to shift the balance.

Zelensky's rallying cry came a day after he met US Vice President JD Vance as Kyiv scrambles to ensure it is not sidelined in Washington's push to wrap up the conflict.

"Ukraine will never accept deals made behind our backs without our involvement," Zelensky said in a speech.

"No decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine. No decisions about Europe without Europe."

Trump's special envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, gave Europeans reasons to doubt they would be heard.

Europe would not be directly involved in talks but would still have an "input", Kellogg said in Munich.

US officials have sought to assure Ukraine that it will not be left in the cold after three years of battling Russia's invasion.

Vance said after his sit-down with Zelensky that the United States was looking for a "durable, lasting peace" that would not lead to further bloodshed in coming years.

But Washington has sent mixed messages to Kyiv, with Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth appearing to rule out Ukraine joining Nato or having all of its territoroy restoreD.

Trump has also pushed for access to Ukraine's stocks of rare earth minerals as compensation for the military aid provided by the United States.

Zelensky said ON Saturday he blocked a deal that would have given the US access to vast amounts of Ukrainian natural resources as it lacked "security guarantees" for Kyiv. (AFP)