Ukraine must be 'at the table' after Trump-Putin summit: Merz
"Ukraine must be at the table when follow-up meetings take place," Merz said after an online conference with Trump and European leaders, adding that "a ceasefire must come first" before any peace negotiations.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew to Berlin on Wednesday and met Merz before they both joined other European leaders for talks with Trump ahead of his planned summit with Putin in Alaska on Friday.
Other leaders on the call included French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the heads of the European Union and NATO.
Merz said a ceasefire "must be the starting point" and that negotiations must include robust security guarantees for Kyiv and "be part of a joint transatlantic strategy".
He said "Ukraine is ready to negotiate on territorial issues" but also that "legal recognition of Russian occupations is not up for debate" and that "the principle that borders may not be changed by force must continue to apply".
"There is hope for movement, there is hope for peace in Ukraine," he said.
Merz had called the meeting with Zelenskyy and European leaders on Wednesday to try to convince Trump to respect Kyiv's interests during his summit with Putin.
The German chancellor said the talks had been "really constructive" and the leaders had "wished President Trump all the best" with the meeting.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Ukraine drone attack injures train station employee in Russia's Voronezh, governor says
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A railway employee was injured and a power line damaged by a Ukrainian drone attack at a station in Russia's Voronezh region, the regional governor said on Sunday. "According to preliminary information, a railway station track technician was injured in one of the municipalities," Alexander Gusev said of the overnight attack on the Telegram messaging app. "He has been hospitalised." Gusev said the attack caused train delays, but by Sunday morning trains were running back on schedule. The Russian defence ministry, which reports only how many drones its units destroy not how many Ukraine launches, said on the Telegram messaging app that nine drones were downed over the Voronezh region in Russia's southwest. In total, the ministry said, its defence systems destroyed 46 Ukrainian drones overnight, all of them in regions west of Moscow. Reuters could not independently verify the Russian reports. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Kyiv says that its strikes inside Russia are in answer to Moscow's continued attacks on Ukraine and are aimed at destroying infrastructure key to Russia's war efforts. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Life These cats may have disabilities, but they are resilient and capable of being affectionate Singapore Motorcyclist dies after multi-vehicle collision on TPE Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day The reports of the attacks came after a summit between the U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin yielded no agreement on ending Russia's war in Ukraine. Trump said on Saturday that Kyiv should make a deal with Moscow to end the war because "Russia is a very big power, and they're not." REUTERS
AsiaOne
3 hours ago
- AsiaOne
European leaders reaffirm support for Ukraine after Trump-Putin talks, World News
BERLIN - Several European leaders on Saturday (Aug 16) jointly pledged to continue support for Ukraine and maintain pressure on Russia until the war in Ukraine ends, after a summit in Alaska between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The joint statement from leaders including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was issued after Trump briefed them on his talks with Putin. It said the next step must be talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and that they were ready to work with Trump and Zelenskiy towards a three-way summit with European support. Trump said after his talks with Putin that Ukraine should agree a deal to end the war with Russia. He said he had agreed with the Russian leader that the best way to do this was to go straight to a peace settlement rather than via a ceasefire, something hitherto opposed by Kyiv and its European allies. The European statement - also signed by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and European Council President Antonio Costa - said Ukraine must have "ironclad" security guarantees to defend its territorial integrity. "It will be up to Ukraine to make decisions on its territory. International borders must not be changed by force. "Our support to Ukraine will continue. We are determined to do more to keep Ukraine strong in order to achieve an end to the fighting and a just and lasting peace," the statement said. [[nid:721411]] "As long as the killing in Ukraine continues, we stand ready to uphold the pressure on Russia. We will continue to strengthen sanctions and wider economic measures to put pressure on Russia's war economy until there is a just and lasting peace."
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Three Republican-led states to deploy National Guard troops to US capital
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Members of the FBI and the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) run at the Navy Yard–Ballpark metro station in Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 15, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo The Republican governors of three states are deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., at the request of the administration of President Donald Trump, who has portrayed the city as awash in crime. The announcements on Saturday of troops from hundreds of miles away in West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio came a day after D.C. officials and the Trump administration negotiated a deal to keep Mayor Muriel Bowser's appointed police chief, Pamela Smith, in charge of the police department after D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit to block the federal takeover of the department. Trump, a Republican, said this week he was deploying hundreds of D.C. National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the Democratic-led city's police department to curb what he depicted as a crime and homelessness emergency. Justice Department data, however, showed violent crime in 2024 hit a 30-year low in Washington, a self-governing federal district under the jurisdiction of Congress. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey's office said in a statement he was deploying 300 to 400 National Guard troops to D.C. in "a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation." The statement said he also was providing equipment and specialized training. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster responded to a Pentagon request by announcing that 200 of his state's National Guard troops would be sent. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said he would send 150 military police members in the coming days, adding none of them were "currently serving as law enforcement officers in the state." Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Business Manage your household finances like a business for clarity, say entrepreneurs Business Silence does not work when dealing with job loss blues Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day After the announcements, Mayor Bowser posted on X: "American soldiers and airmen policing American citizens on American soil is #UnAmerican." TROOPS TO OTHER CITIES? The National Guard serves as a militia that answers to the governors of the 50 states except when called into federal service. The D.C. National Guard reports directly to the president. Trump, who has suggested he could take similar actions in other Democratic-controlled cities, has sought to expand the powers of the presidency in his second term, inserting himself into the affairs of major banks, law firms and elite universities. In June, Trump ordered 700 Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles, against the wishes of California's Democratic governor, during protests over mass immigration raids by federal officials. South Carolina's McMaster said his troops would immediately return to South Carolina if needed to respond to a possible hurricane or other natural disaster. Hurricane Erin, now northeast of Puerto Rico, has become a catastrophic Category 5 storm that could bring ocean swells to the U.S. East Coast early next week, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Saturday. National Guard troops often respond to natural disasters and rarely police U.S. civilians. Drew Galang, a spokesperson for West Virginia's Morrisey, said the state's National Guard received the order to send equipment and personnel to D.C. late on Friday and was working to organize the deployment. A White House official said on Saturday that more National Guard troops would be called in to Washington to "protect federal assets, create a safe environment for law enforcement officials to carry out their duties when required, and provide a visible presence to deter crime." A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said a formal order was expected to go out that would authorize National Guard troops in D.C. to carry firearms. The official said this order would affect mostly military police officers with sidearms. Reuters has reported that the National Guard troops would have weapons nearby, such as in their vehicles. The White House said on Saturday that D.C. National Guard members have conducted patrols on foot and in vehicles around the National Mall and Union Station. The White House said the National Guard troops are not making arrests now and that they may be armed. It is not clear how the administration could deploy National Guard troops elsewhere. A federal judge in San Francisco is expected in the coming weeks to issue a ruling on whether Trump violated the law with the Los Angeles deployments. REUTERS
