European leaders rush to Washington in urgent bid to save Ukraine from territorial losses
Trump is leaning on Zelenskiy to strike an agreement after he met Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin in Alaska and emerged more aligned with Moscow on seeking a peace deal instead of a ceasefire first. Trump and Zelenskiy will meet on Monday.
'If peace is not going to be possible here and this is just going to continue on as a war, people will continue to die by the thousands... we may unfortunately wind up there, but we don't want to wind up there,' Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview with CBS' 'Face the Nation.'
Trump on Sunday promised 'BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA' in a social media post without specifying what this might be.
Sources briefed on Moscow's thinking told Reuters the US and Russian leaders have discussed proposals for Russia to relinquish tiny pockets of occupied Ukraine in exchange for Kyiv ceding a swathe of fortified land in the east and freezing the front lines elsewhere.
Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia's envoy to international organisations in Vienna, said Russia agreed that any peace agreement on Ukraine must provide security guarantees to Kyiv.
'Many leaders of #EU states emphasise that a future peace agreement should provide reliable security assurances or guarantees for Ukraine,' Ulyanov said on social media platform X. 'Russia agrees with that. But it has equal right to expect that Moscow will also get efficient security guarantees.'
Top Trump officials hinted that the fate of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region – which is already mostly under Russian control – was on the line, while some sort of defensive pact was also on the table.
'We were able to win the following concession, that the United States could offer Article 5-like protection,' Trump envoy Steve Witkoff told CNN's 'State of the Union' on Sunday, suggesting this would be in lieu of Ukraine seeking NATO membership. He said it was 'the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that.'
Article 5 of Natos founding treaty enshrines the principle of collective defence, in which an attack on any member is considered an attack on all.
That pledge may not be enough to sway Kyiv to sign over Donbas. Ukraine's borders were already meant to be guaranteed when Ukraine surrendered a nuclear arsenal in 1994, which proved to be little deterrent when Russia absorbed Crimea in 2014 and launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. The war has killed or wounded more than 1 million people.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosted a meeting of allies on Sunday to bolster Zelenskiy's hand, hoping in particular to lock down robust security guarantees for Ukraine that would include a US role.
The Europeans are eager to help Zelenskiy avoid a repeat of his last Oval Office meeting in February when Trump and Vice President JD Vance gave the Ukrainian leader a public dressing-down, accusing him of being ungrateful and disrespectful.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will also travel to Washington, as will Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who has played rounds of golf with Trump this year, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, an admirer of many Trump policies.
European show of unity
European leaders at the Sunday meeting projected unity, welcoming US talk of a security guarantee but stressing no discussions over territory could take place without Kyiv's involvement and clear arrangements to safeguard the rest of Ukraine's land.
Some called for an immediate ceasefire, which Trump originally said he was trying to secure during his summit with Putin. Trump later changed course and agreed with the Russians that peace negotiations could come without a ceasefire, an idea dismissed by some of Ukraine's European allies.
'You cannot negotiate peace under falling bombs,' Poland's foreign ministry said in a statement.
A joint communique released by Britain, France and Germany after the meeting said their leaders were ready 'to deploy a reassurance force once hostilities have ceased, and to help secure Ukraine's skies and seas and regenerate Ukraine's armed forces.'
Some European countries, led by Britain and France, have been working since last year on such a plan, but others in the region remain reluctant to become involved militarily.
Zelenskiy said on X there had been 'clear support for Ukraine's independence and sovereignty' at the meeting. 'Everyone agrees that borders must not be changed by force.'
He said any prospective security guarantees 'must really be very practical, delivering protection on land, in the air, and at sea, and must be developed with Europe's participation.'
Rubio said both Russia and Ukraine would need to make concessions to reach a peace deal and security guarantees for Ukraine would be discussed on Monday. He also said there must be additional consequences for Russia if no deal was reached.
'I'm not saying we're on the verge of a peace deal, but I am saying that we saw movement, enough movement to justify a follow-up meeting with Zelenskiy and the Europeans, enough movement for us to dedicate even more time to this,' Rubio told broadcaster CBS.
Putin briefed his close ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, about the Alaska talks, and also spoke with Kazakhstan's president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
Trump said on Friday Ukraine should make a deal to end the war because 'Russia is a very big power, and they're not.'
After the Alaska summit, Trump phoned Zelenskiy and told him the Kremlin chief had offered to freeze most front lines if Ukraine ceded all of Donetsk, a source familiar with the matter said. Zelenskiy rejected the demand. — Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
a few seconds ago
- New Straits Times
Malaysia restarts trade talks with EU, pursues broader diversification; Tengku Zafrul
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has revived trade negotiations with the European Union (EU) after more than a decade, said Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz. He said the move marks a renewed effort to strengthen ties with one of its largest trading partners outside Asia. "EU is one. We've resumed the negotiation, which was stopped in 2012. Last year, we resumed the negotiation. Officially, we started this year," he said in an interview with CNBC's Squawk Box Asia. He said the renewed talks come as Malaysia pursues a broader diversification strategy, with trade agreements also being advanced with Gulf states, South Korea, India and China. The EU is Malaysia's fourth-largest trading partner, with bilateral trade valued at €52.2 billion (RM260 billion) in 2024, according to official data. The bloc is also Malaysia's third-largest export destination, with electronics, machinery and palm oil products among the key goods shipped to Europe. Negotiations on a Malaysia–EU Free Trade Agreement were first launched in 2010 but stalled two years later over differences on market access, government procurement and sustainability standards.
Malay Mail
a few seconds ago
- Malay Mail
India and China: A strategic rapprochement shaped by US tariffs — Phar Kim Beng and Luthfy Hamzah
AUGUST 18 — When Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in New Delhi ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned visit to China, the world paid attention. The meeting was not merely another diplomatic formality, but a possible watershed in Asian geopolitics. Against the backdrop of troops facing each other across the icy expanse of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and the heavy burden of US tariffs weighing on both economies, India and China are testing the waters of a strategic rapprochement. Their cautious recalibration of relations is not rooted in sentiment, but in necessity — especially in the face of mounting American pressure. At the centre of this delicate dance lies the persistent military standoff in eastern Ladakh. Nearly 60,000 troops remain deployed on both sides, a constant reminder of the fragility of the border and the tensions that erupted so violently in 2020. Yet, Wang Yi's talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval were not limited to the security domain. They were also about advancing confidence-building measures (CBMs), the language of pragmatism when hard compromises are out of reach. Reducing risks of accidental escalation and reintroducing predictability at the border are modest steps, but they set the stage for broader engagement. Equally significant are the economic signals that followed. For the first time in five years, India and China are preparing to reopen historic Himalayan trade routes through Lipulekh, Shipki La, and Nathu La. These mountain corridors, long dormant, symbolise more than commerce; they carry with them the potential to rebuild a lattice of interdependence. The writers argue that US tariffs have pushed India and China toward a pragmatic rapprochement, reopening trade routes and flights while cautiously managing border tensions. — Reuters pic By reviving these links, both governments are acknowledging that estrangement is costly in an era of volatile supply chains and global tariff wars. At a time when Washington is weaponising tariffs as high as 50 per cent, India and China appear determined to restore their own channels of exchange. People-to-people ties are also inching forward. Both countries have asked their airlines to be ready to resume direct flights, a move that would mark a decisive gesture of normalisation. Air connectivity between India and China has been absent for years, reflecting the diplomatic freeze of the post-Galwan era. Restoring flights will not erase mistrust overnight, but it will inject momentum into academic exchanges, business partnerships, and tourism — soft but indispensable elements of reconciliation. None of these moves should be seen in isolation. They are part of a broader recalibration driven by US policy. Washington's escalating tariffs under President Donald Trump's second term have hardened fault lines across the global economy. Ostensibly aimed at disciplining China, they have in practice complicated India's own trade with the United States (US). Instead of isolating Beijing, these tariffs have had the unintended effect of nudging Delhi and Beijing toward cautious alignment. Strengthening solidarity among the Brics economies has become one visible consequence, as members seek to counterbalance of the acute pressures of American economic coercion. For India, finding common cause with China — however tentatively — offers a way to manage exposure to Washington's volatility. This does not mean India is drifting wholesale into China's orbit. The mistrust born of historical rivalry, unresolved border disputes, and concerns over Beijing's partnership with Islamabad runs deep. Nor will Delhi forsake its strategic equities with Washington, Tokyo, and Canberra in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue. Known widely as the Quad. Rather, India's pursuit of a rapprochement with China should be understood as a strategy of preventing itself by being pressured by Trump, especially his onerous tariff regime. By reopening trade routes, restoring flights, and discussing CBMs, India is signalling that it will not allow its future to be dictated by a zero-sum rivalry between Washington and Beijing. In this sense, the thaw between India and China is less about reconciliation and more about resilience. It reflects a desire to assert autonomy in a multipolar world, to resist being boxed into binary choices. For Beijing, easing tensions with India reduces the risk of a two-front strategic squeeze, freeing resources to deal with the United States in the Pacific. For Delhi, balancing relations with China provides a counterweight to American unpredictability while preserving strategic flexibility. The convergence is pragmatic, not ideological. What emerges from Wang Yi's visit is the prospect of an incremental but important shift. The reopening of mountain passes, the resumption of flights, and the easing of military tensions along the LAC all point to a relationship that may be moving from confrontation to coexistence. The United States, in seeking to discipline China through tariffs, may ironically have created the very conditions for a Sino-Indian rapprochement. The story is far from finished. Suspicion remains entrenched, and the road to genuine trust will be long. Yet geopolitics has its moments of quiet inflection, when external pressure forces old rivals to rediscover common ground. Wang Yi's Delhi visit suggests that India and China, though wary, may now be prepared to walk that path together — not to embrace, but to avoid being entrapped by the reckless economics of others. In the end, what binds them is not friendship but necessity, forged in the crucible of American tariffs and the shared desire to secure their place in an uncertain world order. *Phar Kim Beng, PhD is professor of Asean Studies, International Islamic University of Malaysia and director of the Institute of Internationalisation and Asean Studies (IINTAS). Luthfy Hamzah is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Internationalisation and Asean Studies (IINTAS). **This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
The Sun
a few seconds ago
- The Sun
US adviser Navarro says India's Russian crude buying must stop
WHITE HOUSE trade adviser Peter Navarro said India's purchases of Russian crude were funding Moscow's war in Ukraine and had to stop. New Delhi was 'now cozying up to both Russia and China,' Navarro wrote in an opinion piece published in the Financial Times on Monday. 'If India wants to be treated as a strategic partner of the U.S., it needs to start acting like one.' India's Foreign Ministry has previously said the country is being unfairly singled out for buying Russian oil while the United States and European Union continue to purchase goods from Russia. U.S. President Donald Trump announced an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods earlier this month, citing New Delhi's continued purchases of Russian oil. The move will take total tariffs on imports from India to 50%. 'India acts as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil, converting embargoed crude into high-value exports while giving Moscow the dollars it needs,' Navarro wrote. The adviser also said India's close ties with Russia and China made it risky to transfer cutting-edge U.S. military capabilities to India. Separately, Indian Oil Corp, the country's top refiner, will continue to buy Russian oil depending on economics, the company's head of finance Anuj Jain told an analyst meeting on Monday. Jain said his company's Russian oil processing in the June quarter was about 24% compared to an average 22% in 2024/25. He said purchases for the September quarter were continuing and the discounts on Russian oil were in the range of $1.50 per barrel to the Dubai benchmark. Longtime rivals China and India are quietly and cautiously strengthening ties against the backdrop of Trump's unpredictable approach to both. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of the month while Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit India from Monday for talks on the disputed border between the two countries. A planned visit by U.S. trade negotiators to New Delhi from August 25-29 has been called off, a source said over the weekend, delaying talks on a proposed trade agreement and dashing hopes of relief from additional U.S. tariffs on Indian goods from August 27 - REUTERS
