Zelenskiy thanks EU for support as Trump, Putin to meet
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West Australian
23 minutes ago
- West Australian
Donald Trump meets with European leaders ahead of US-Russia talks, Zelensky warns Putin is ‘bluffing'
US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and leaders from several NATO member nations held virtual talks on Wednesday (local time), just two days before Mr Trump's scheduled summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Dialling in from The White House, Mr Trump shared a message on Truth Social ahead of the meeting. 'Will be speaking to European Leaders in a short while. They are great people who want to see a deal done,' he wrote. Mr Trump told reporters it was a 'very good call'. 'President Zelensky was on the call. I would rate it a 10, very friendly,' he said. Mr Trump reportedly told the Europeans that his goal for Friday's face-to-face meeting with Mr Putin was to obtain a ceasefire between Moscow and Kyiv. He also agreed that Mr Zelensky had to be involved in any decisions related to territorial concessions and that security guarantees had to be part of the deal, according to French President Emmanuel Macron. 'Territorial questions that fall under Ukraine's authority cannot be negotiated and will only be negotiated by the President of Ukraine,' Mr Macron said, adding that Mr Trump had 'expressed' the same. Mr Trump also announced that if his highly-critical meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin goes well, he would like to have a second meeting with Mr Putin, Mr Zelensky and himself. 'If the first one goes okay, we'll have a quick second one,' he told reporters. 'I would like to do it almost immediately, and we'll have a quick second meeting between President Putin and President Zelensky and myself, if they'd like to have me there.' The US President will meet his Russian counterpart in Anchorage, Alaska on Friday for talks on how to end the three-and-a-half year conflict in Ukraine. Mr Trump also said that Russia would face consequences if Mr Putin does not agree to stop the war. 'Yes, they will,' he said. He did not spell out the consequences but he has warned of stiff economic sanctions if no breakthrough can be achieved. Mr Trump has previously said both sides will have to swap land to end fighting that has cost tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions. Some European governments worry that a land swap could leave Russia with almost a fifth of Ukraine and embolden Mr Putin to expand further west in the future. Participants in the call with Mr Trump included leaders from France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Poland and Finland as well as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa. Mr Zelensky said on Wednesday he hoped the Trump-Putin talks will centre on a ceasefire and he warned Mr Trump that Mr Putin was 'bluffing' about his desire to end the war. 'I told the US President and all our European colleagues that Putin is bluffing,' he said at a joint briefing in Berlin with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. 'He is trying to apply pressure before the meeting in Alaska along all parts of the Ukrainian front. Russia is trying to show that it can occupy all of Ukraine.' Mr Zelensky added that he wanted a three-leader meeting, saying no talks about Ukraine should exclude his country's representatives. Ms Von der Leyen said that Europe, the United States and the NATO military alliance had strengthened their common ground for Ukraine. 'We have had a very good call,' the European Commission President wrote on X after attending a virtual meeting with Mr Trump, European leaders and Mr Zelensky. 'Today Europe, the US and NATO have strengthened the common ground for Ukraine,' Ms von der Leyen said, adding that 'we will remain in close coordination. Nobody wants peace more than us, a just and lasting peace'. - With Reuters, DPA
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
US urges Australia and regional allies to increase military spending, warning that time is running out to deter Beijing
The United States has ramped up its call for a stronger military posture from Australia and its Asian allies, warning they cannot afford to lag behind while European nations dramatically boost their defence spending in response to global threats. With the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in the Pacific looming, the Pentagon has issued a clear message - deterrence against China must become a collective priority. Senior US defence officials are looking to fortify military ties across the Indo-Pacific, with a pointed focus on Canberra and Tokyo. 'We need our allies to step up,' a US defence official told the Australian. 'How does it make sense for our Asian allies to sit back while the Europeans are stepping up and committing to 5 per cent of GDP to deal with Russia, which is one tenth the GDP of China?' While NATO members agreed in June to lift defence spending to five per cent of GDP, Washington sees Asian partners as lagging behind. South Korea has been singled out as a model ally, praised for its robust defence budget and substantial standing forces. Australia, by contrast, is facing criticism from US officials who argue Canberra is not investing enough, even to fulfil its commitments under AUKUS Pillar 1, which involves acquiring at least three US-built Virginia-class nuclear submarines. 'On defence spending, the objective analysis is that the Australian government is not spending enough on defence, even for Pillar I,' the official continued. 'This is a very real near-term problem. We have essentially no time in defence terms before 2027.' The year 2027 is viewed within the Pentagon as a key strategic benchmark, with intelligence suggesting Beijing could be in a position to launch an attempt to take Taiwan by then. In Washington, there's growing unease that Australia may not be pulling its weight. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's recent Curtin Oration, in which he praised former PM John Curtin for resisting pressure from wartime leaders Churchill and Roosevelt, has reportedly triggered concerns among Trump-aligned figures. The speech was seen as a subtle signal of resistance to rising American expectations, especially in light of mounting calls for Australia to commit more resources to AUKUS and the wider regional deterrence posture. Inside the Pentagon, key strategic goals include strengthening homeland defence, reinvigorating the US industrial base, countering China's growing assertiveness, and ensuring allies 'do more to pick up slack'. The ongoing AUKUS review, led by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, is being described as 'fact-based, rigorous, and empirical'. It covers both Pillar 1 and Pillar 2, the latter focused on sharing advanced defence technologies with Australia and the UK. 'I think the main thrust of the review is to give people a real brass-tacks, clear-eyed understanding of where things stand,' a US official explained. Australia has already pledged $1.6 billion to support the US shipbuilding sector under the AUKUS framework.
Sky News AU
2 hours ago
- Sky News AU
JD Vance joins talks to end Ukraine war
US Vice President JD Vance was involved in an emergency summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders overnight. The US Vice President joined from the UK, where he has been visiting an RAAF airbase. Mr Vance met with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, stating that they worked on a plan to end the war in Ukraine.
