Zelenskyy and European leaders speak with Trump ahead of Putin meeting
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has come to Berlin on Wednesday to join German Chancellor Merz for video calls in a last-minute bid to ensure the US president understands what is at stake for Ukraine and the continent.
Although Trump stated that his ultimate goal is to bring Zelenskyy and Putin to the negotiating table, this will not happen in two days' time, when the US and Russian leaders are to meet in Alaska.
Ukraine's president is not scheduled to participate in the Alaska summit, nor are the European leaders.
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Euronews
5 hours ago
- Euronews
Trump: Zelenskyy, European leaders to attend talks after Putin meeting
ADVERTISEMENT Hours before departing for his meeting with Vladimir Putin, US President Donald Trump said he expected the summit will be a "good meeting," but added that it won't be the most important round of peace talks. "The second meeting will be more important," Trump said, adding that he expects it to include Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and "possibly someone from Europe," in addition to Trump and Putin. Donald Trump previously that he would want the second meeting to take place as soon as possible after the Alaska summit. "I'd like to see it happen very quickly after this meeting. I'd like to see it actually happen maybe in Alaska, where we just stay, because it's so much easier," he said. On Thursday Trump described the upcoming Alaska talks as "setting the table for the second meeting" which would include Putin and Zelenskyy. "We are going to have the second meeting if the first one goes well," Trump said. When asked if a meeting with Putin can be perceived as a "reward," Trump categorically denied it. "President Putin would like to have a deal," Trump said stating that "Without me he would take over all of Ukraine. But I am president and he is not going to mess with me." It is the first time the US president has suggested that European leaders might be invited to the second meeting. Trump has said repeatedly he wouldn't have allowed the conflict to start if he had been in office and on the presidential campaign trail said more than once he could end the wat within a day. Since returning to office, Trump has criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying he should have made a deal with Putin to avoid the conflict. But more recently he appears to be growing impatient with Putin, criticising him for launching strikes on civilian targets in Ukraine and warning of "severe consequences" if he doesn't stop the war after Friday's talks in Alaska. Talks with Europe On Thursday a virtual summit took place initiated by the leaders of Ukraine and Germany in an effort to remind the world of one of Kyiv's main diplomatic principles: "Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine." Following the call with Trump and European leaders, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the top priority both for Wednesday's talks and Friday's summit is a ceasefire, a sentiment that, according to Zelenskyy, Trump agreed with. "We talked about ceasefire today. President Trump said this is one of his priorities in conversation with President Putin," Zelenskyy said after the call during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. "I very much hope that some agreement will be reached, because so far all the talks held with ended only with him increasing military presence, intensifying attacks." According to Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz, European leaders were jointly trying to steer the Alaska meeting between Trump and Putin "in the right direction."
LeMonde
7 hours ago
- LeMonde
Trump warns Alaska summit with Putin has '25 percent chance' of failing
US President Donald Trump on Thursday, August 14, acknowledged his high-stakes summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin may fail, and said any Ukraine deal would come through a future three-way meeting with Kyiv to "divvy things up." Putin flies to Alaska on Friday at the invitation of Trump on his first visit to a Western country since he ordered the 2022 invasion of Ukraine that has killed tens of thousands of people. The Kremlin said that the two presidents planned to meet one-on-one, heightening fears by European leaders that Putin will cajole Trump into a settlement imposed on Ukraine. Trump, on the eve of the summit, insisted that he would not finalize any deal with Putin and that he would include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in any decisions. "This meeting sets up the second meeting, but there is a 25 percent chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting," Trump told Fox News Radio. "The second meeting is going to be very, very important, because that's going to be a meeting where they make a deal. And I don't want to use the word 'divvy' things up. But you know, to a certain extent, it's not a bad term," Trump said. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said any future deal needed to ensure Ukraine's security. "To achieve peace, I think we all recognize that there will have to be some conversation about security guarantees," Rubio told reporters in Washington, saying he was "hopeful" about the summit. Shifting tone Trump had boasted that he could end the war within 24 hours of returning to the White House in January. But his calls to Putin – and intense pressure on Zelensky to accept concessions – have failed to move the Russian leader and Trump has warned of "very severe consequences" if Putin keeps snubbing his overtures. Putin on Thursday welcomed US efforts to end the conflict and said that talks could also help yield an agreement on nuclear arms control. "The US administration... is making quite energetic and sincere efforts to end the fighting," Putin told a meeting of top officials in Moscow. The talks are set to begin at 11:30 am (1930 GMT) Friday at the Elmendorf Air Force Base, a major US military installation in Alaska that has been crucial in monitoring Russia. "This conversation will take place in a one-on-one format, naturally with the participation of interpreters," Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters in Moscow. He said that delegations would continue discussions over a working lunch and that Putin and Trump would hold a joint news conference. The White House has not confirmed any plans for a joint press appearance. Zelensky, who will not attend Friday's summit in Alaska, met Thursday with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, after talks a day earlier in Berlin. Starmer greeted the Ukrainian leader with a warm hug and handshake on the steps of his Downing Street residence and later voiced solidarity. European leaders expressed relief after a call with Trump on Wednesday, saying he appeared focused on a ceasefire rather than concessions by Ukraine.
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EU urges China to drop sanctions on two Lithuanian banks
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