
Europe's top politicians to join Zelenskyy for tense talks with Trump
In a post on X, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she would meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this afternoon in Brussels, and that both will participate in a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing - a group of countries backing Kyiv.
'At the request of President Zelenskyy, I will join the meeting with President Trump and other European leaders at the White House tomorrow,' von der Leyen said.
NATO chief Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Finnish President Alexander Stubb will also attend the meeting.
The German government said that the European leaders would try to emphasise 'interest in a swift peace agreement in Ukraine'.
Meanwhile, media reports in the US suggest that President Donald Trump has informed European heads of state and government that he aims to arrange a trilateral summit between himself, Zelenskyy, and Russian President Vladimir Putin by next Friday.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz suggested that the European venue for the potential summit could be a place where discussions take place on a permanent basis.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
(sm, bms)
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Euractiv
6 hours ago
- Euractiv
Europeans to ask Trump how far he will back Ukraine security guarantees
In preparation for a meeting with Zelenskyy and Trump to discuss ways of ending Russia's war against Ukraine, European leaders have already made notes on security guarantees for Kyiv and other pressing issues. European leaders will join Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on a Monday visit to Washington to see President Donald Trump in a collective bid to find a way to end Moscow's invasion, with the US offering security guarantees for Kyiv. The meeting follows a summit in Alaska between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin that failed to yield any breakthrough on an immediate ceasefire that the US leader had been pushing for. The leaders heading to Washington on Monday to appear alongside Zelensky call themselves the 'coalition of the willing'. They include British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Also heading to Washington will be Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who get on well with Trump. Macron said on Sunday that the European leaders would ask Trump how far he would back security guarantees for Ukraine, adding he did not think Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted peace. The French leader emphasised Europe's will to present a united front with Ukrainians and ask the Americans 'to what extent' they are ready to contribute to the security guarantees that would be offered to Ukraine in a peace agreement. 'No country can accept the loss of territories unless it has security guarantees for its remaining territory,' Macron said, adding that if Europe appears weak today 'we will pay a heavy price tomorrow." Macron was speaking from his summer residence after joining a video conference with other European leaders to coordinate their joint position before the meeting with Trump in Washington on Monday. On Moscow's position, he commented: 'There is only one state proposing a peace that would be a capitulation: Russia.' Peace deal without a ceasefire? After the Alaska meeting, Trump pivoted to say that he was now seeking a peace deal, even without a ceasefire. On Sunday, he posted 'BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA. Stay tuned!' on his Truth Social platform but did not elaborate. Trump's Russia envoy Steve Witkoff said on Sunday on CNN that Trump and Putin had agreed in their summit on 'robust security guarantees' for Ukraine. But Zelenskyy, on a Brussels visit on Sunday hosted by European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, rejected the idea of Russia offering his country security guarantees. 'What President Trump said about security guarantees is much more important to me than Putin's thoughts, because Putin will not give any security guarantees,' he said. Von der Leyen hailed the US offer to provide security guarantees modelled on - but separate from - NATO's collective security arrangement, known as Article 5. 'We welcome President Trump's willingness to contribute to Article 5-like security guarantees for Ukraine, and the coalition of the willing, including the European Union, is ready to do its share,' von der Leyen said. Territorial concessions? Trump's pivot to looking for a peace deal, not a ceasefire, aligns with the stance long taken by Putin, and which Ukraine and its European allies have criticised as Putin's way to buy time with the intent of making battlefield gains. Witkoff, in his CNN interview, elaborated that the United States was prepared to provide their 'game-changing' security guarantees as part of a process that would involve territorial "concessions". Zelenskyy reiterated that the Ukrainian constitution makes it impossible to cede any territory. 'We need real negotiations, which means they can start where the front line is now [...] Russia is still unsuccessful in the Donetsk region. Putin has been unable to take it for twelve years,' the Ukrainian leader said. However, he added that since the territorial issue is so important, 'it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia.' 'So far, Russia has given no sign that such a trilateral meeting will happen', he said. According to an official briefed on a call Trump held with Zelenskyy and European leaders as he flew back from Alaska, the US leader supported a Putin proposal that Russia take full control of two eastern Ukrainian regions in exchange for freezing the frontline in two others. Putin 'de facto demands that Ukraine leave Donbas,' an area consisting of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in eastern Ukraine, which Russia currently only partly controls, the source said. In exchange, Russian forces would halt their offensive in the Black Sea port region of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in southern Ukraine, where the main cities are still under Ukrainian control. Several months into its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia in September 2022 claimed to have annexed all four Ukrainian regions even though its troops still do not fully control any of them. 'The Ukrainian president refused to leave Donbas,' the source said. What sort of consequences? US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to NBC on Sunday, warned of 'consequences' - including the potential imposition of new sanctions on Russia - if no peace deal is reached on Ukraine. Von der Leyen also emphasised that 'this peace must be achieved through strength' and Europe was preparing one more sanction package: 'We have adopted 18 packages so far, and we are advancing preparation for the nineteenth. This package will be forthcoming in early September'. (bms, sm)


Euractiv
9 hours ago
- Euractiv
US mixes praise with pressure on Russia
While Trump and US Special Envoy Witkoff are claiming progress in the negotiations with Russia regarding Ukraine, US Secretary of State Rubio is threatening with sanctions. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday warned of 'consequences,' including the potential imposition of new sanctions on Russia, if no peace deal is reached on Ukraine ahead of a key meeting at the White House. 'If we're not going to be able to reach an agreement here at any point, then there are going to be consequences,' he told US broadcaster NBC. 'Not only the consequences of the war continuing, but the consequences of all those sanctions continuing - and potentially new sanctions on top of that as well,' he added. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump hailed progress on Russia, just days after a meeting with his Russian counterpart in Alaska. 'BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA. STAY TUNED!' Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, without elaborating. 'The Russians made some concessions' Separately, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff told CNN that Trump and Putin had agreed to 'robust security guarantees' for Ukraine during their high-stakes summit in Alaska. He added that Russia had agreed to unspecified concessions regarding five Ukrainian regions central to the conflict, particularly the eastern Donetsk province. 'We agreed to robust security guarantees that I would describe as game-changing,' Witkoff said. 'The Russians made some concessions at the table with regard to all five of those regions. There is an important discussion concerning Donetsk and what would happen there - and that discussion will be detailed on Monday,' he added. At a press conference today in Brussels, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed Trump's willingness to work with Europe and provide NATO-like guarantees. However, he noted that the details regarding each party's role in these guarantees still need to be clarified. (sm, bms)


Euractiv
11 hours ago
- Euractiv
Zelenskyy: Territorial issue should be discussed ‘only' at trilateral meeting
The issue of a territorial swap, demanded by Russian President Vladimir Putin, should be discussed only between Ukraine and Russia at a trilateral meeting with the United States, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Speaking today at a press conference with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, Zelenskyy reiterated that the Ukrainian constitution makes it impossible to cede any territory. 'Russia is still unsuccessful in the Donetsk region. Putin has been unable to take it for twelve years,' the Ukrainian leader said. However, he added that since the territorial issue is so important, 'it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia.' 'So far, Russia has given no sign that such a trilateral meeting will happen. And if Russia refuses, then new sanctions must follow,' he said. Russia currently occupies 20% of Ukraine's territory – Crimea excluded – which was annexed by Russia in 2014. Von der Leyen, for her part, reiterated the EU's position that international borders cannot be changed by force. 'These are decisions to be made by Ukraine and Ukraine alone, and these decisions cannot be taken without Ukraine at the table,' she said. Asked about former US President Donald Trump's decision to focus on a peace deal instead of his initial objective of a ceasefire, von der Leyen replied that 'the term is not so important.' What matters most, she stressed, is stopping the killing. 'To achieve that, a trilateral meeting between the presidents of Ukraine, the United States, and Russia should happen as soon as possible,' she said, adding that any agreement should include 'clear timelines.' NATO-like guarantees She emphasised that 'this peace must be achieved through strength' and underscored the need for 'strong security guarantees to protect both Ukraine and Europe's vital security interests.' According to von der Leyen, there could be no limitations on the Ukrainian armed forces, whether in terms of cooperation with, or assistance from, third countries. Zelenskyy welcomed Trump's willingness to work with Europe and provide NATO-like guarantees. 'For everyone in Europe, this is a significant change, but there are no details on how it will work and what America's and Europe's role will be. And this is our main task,' he said. Regarding Ukraine's EU path, Zelenskyy stressed that there should be no division between Ukraine and Moldova. 'If such a division takes place, it will automatically mean that Europe is divided on Ukraine - that Europe does not have a common and strong position on guarantees. Many in Europe see that such a vision will only make things worse,' he warned.