Italy has rejected Emmanuel Macron’s proposal for a one-month ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine as the first step to end the war.

Its foreign minister also warned European governments to tread “very carefully” in discussions over deploying troops to the war-torn nation to police any future peace settlement.

Britain and Ukraine also poured cold water over the French president’s plan which was raised at a summit of international leaders hosted by Sir Keir Starmer in London on Sunday.

The divides will trouble European leaders who are scrambling to devise a common plan to counter Donald Trump’s strategy to resolve the conflict.

“I believe that everything must be done together, Europe and the United States, sitting at a table with Ukraine and Russia to reach a fair and, especially, a long-lasting peace,” Antonio Tajani, Italy’s foreign minister, said of Mr Macron’s proposal.

“Therefore, it is still premature to see what to do, how to do it.”

During the talks at Lancaster House on Sunday, Mr Macron raised the idea of a one-month ceasefire in the air and sea to pave the way for more substantial peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.

The strategy, he told Le Figaro, the French newspaper, would test whether Vladimir Putin is serious about ending his three-year war.

However, there was little appetite to discuss the strategy amongst the 18 other Western leaders involved in the talks.

“The Macron ceasefire was very much a Macron plan,” an official who had been briefed on the discussions told The Telegraph.

The French president is well known for floating ideas for which he has often failed to secure backing.