Europe live: EU says Ukraine should be able to ‘choose its own destiny' ahead of Trump-Putin meeting
Date: 2025-08-12T08:39:00.000Z
Title: the EU insisted 'the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine,'
Content: European Union leaders, excluding Viktor Orbán, say 'the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine'
Jakub Krupa
Tue 12 Aug 2025 10.39 CEST
First published on Tue 12 Aug 2025 09.52 CEST
From
9.52am CEST
09:52
Jakub Krupa
In an early morning statement issued after last night ministerial discussions, as it stressed 'the inherent right of Ukraine to choose its own destiny.'
'Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine has wider implications for European and international security.
We share the conviction that a diplomatic solution must protect Ukraine's and Europe's vital security interests.'
But despite the intentions, the statement didn't demonstrate the EU's unity on this point: Viktor Orbán's Hungary, once again, refused to back the collective position.
And just hours after the EU meeting, Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó was on the phone to Moscow speaking to Russian deputy prime minister Denis Manturov.
But as we get closer to the summit – which Donald Trump described last night as a 'feel-out meeting' – many European leaders are likely to be alarmed by the US president's rhethoric and talk of 'swapping' territories without Ukraine even present at the table.
They will be hoping that the last-ditch attempt to convince Trump of the merits of their position during a scheduled phone call on Wednesday will result in the US president changing his views going into the talks. Let's see.
Elsewhere, we will be keeping an eye on another day of record-breaking heat in parts of Europe. Overnight, Spanish firefighters have finally contained a wildfire near Madrid, which killed one and prompted the evacuation of almost 200 people.
I will bring you all the key updates here.
It's Tuesday, 12 August 2025, it's Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
10.39am CEST
10:39
Meanwhile, the Russian and Belarusian armies are set to hold joint strategic exercises in Belarus from 12-16 September, the Belarusian Defence Ministry said, reported by Reuters.
The aim of the drills is to test the capabilities of Russia and Belarus and 'ensure the military security of the Union State and their readiness to repel possible aggression,' the ministry cited Maj Gen Valery Revenko as saying.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned earlier this year, without giving details or citing evidence, that Russia was 'preparing something' in Belarus this summer under the guise of routine military exercises.
In an interview with Time Magazine last week, Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko said he had decided to move the location of the joint military drills away from Belarus' western borders with European Union countries, citing security concerns raised in Poland and the Baltic nations.
10.12am CEST
10:12
To give you an idea of just how strongly Hungary feels about the EU's statement, the country's prime minister Viktor Orbán took to social media this morning to explain his views.
He said he felt it was necessary to speak before 'the liberal-mainstream chorus' – that's the EU leaders for him – 'begins its newest rendition of their favourite 'Putin's puppet' tune' accusing him of taking pro-Russian positions.
But in short: he said that since the EU was not involved, it shouldn't intervene from the sidelines, and if it wants to talk to Putin, it should call its own EU-Russia summit.
Here is his explanation in full:
'Just four days ahead of the historic summit between President Trump and President Putin, the European Council sought to issue a statement in the name of all EU heads of state and government.
Before the liberal-mainstream chorus begins its newest rendition of their favourite 'Putin's puppet' tune, I decided to share why I could NOT support the statement on behalf of Hungary.
1. The statement attempts to set conditions for a meeting to which leaders of the EU were not invited.
2. The fact that the EU was left on the sidelines is sad enough as it is. The only thing that could make things worse is if we started providing instructions from the bench.
3. The only sensible action for EU leaders is to initiate an EU-Russia summit, based on the example of the US-Russia meeting.
Let's give peace a chance!'
9.52am CEST
09:52
Jakub Krupa
In an early morning statement issued after last night ministerial discussions, as it stressed 'the inherent right of Ukraine to choose its own destiny.'
'Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine has wider implications for European and international security.
We share the conviction that a diplomatic solution must protect Ukraine's and Europe's vital security interests.'
But despite the intentions, the statement didn't demonstrate the EU's unity on this point: Viktor Orbán's Hungary, once again, refused to back the collective position.
And just hours after the EU meeting, Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó was on the phone to Moscow speaking to Russian deputy prime minister Denis Manturov.
But as we get closer to the summit – which Donald Trump described last night as a 'feel-out meeting' – many European leaders are likely to be alarmed by the US president's rhethoric and talk of 'swapping' territories without Ukraine even present at the table.
They will be hoping that the last-ditch attempt to convince Trump of the merits of their position during a scheduled phone call on Wednesday will result in the US president changing his views going into the talks. Let's see.
Elsewhere, we will be keeping an eye on another day of record-breaking heat in parts of Europe. Overnight, Spanish firefighters have finally contained a wildfire near Madrid, which killed one and prompted the evacuation of almost 200 people.
I will bring you all the key updates here.
It's Tuesday, 12 August 2025, it's Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
8 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Ukraine can survive without Donbas, it can't without Black Sea access
As is often the way, the Black Sea slips under the radar. Not to everyone: earlier today, an OSINT account reported a Ukrainian Air Force MiG-29 Fulcrum providing top cover for a cargo ship heading into Odesa. Our own Air Force is flying a C-17 heavy-lift aircraft there as I type this. The military have not forgotten the strategic importance of this sea. And they are right not to do so – the ability to navigate freely on it is hugely important and is not a foregone conclusion. Right at the start of the 2022 invasion, the interaction at Snake Island set the tone for subsequent Ukrainian doggedness. In the face of the Black Sea flagship, the Moskva, off Snake Island, the Ukrainian forces there used some extremely naval language to suggest they go away. It didn't work, and the island was lost, but two months later, the Moskva was sent to the bottom in what was a simple but devastating counter-attack. Symbolic as this sinking was as a single military action, and despite getting Snake Island back shortly afterwards, it was part of a wider maritime tapestry which Ukraine were not winning. Russia was now denying them freedom of navigation – blockading them, to use the wartime term – and it worked, initially halting up to 90 per cent of all sea exports. July 2022 to July 2023 saw the implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the UN and Turkey. This partially alleviated the pressure with exports increasing up to 50 per cent – 33 million tons of grain over 1,000 voyages. Putin ended this initiative in July 2023 – for obvious reasons – recommenced attacks and mining, and numbers dipped again. But by this point, Ukraine's long-range counter-strategy was in full flight. Rapid development and use of uncrewed surface vessels, combined with more conventional missile and special forces strikes, worked to drive the Black Sea Fleet out of Sevastopol and virtually into hiding. It's risky in warfare to say anyone has lost until the surrender is signed, but in terms of what the Black Sea Fleet set out to achieve, against how it was forced to operate for most of 2024 it is not far off. They certainly lost their fighting cohesion at sea. By July 2024, pre-war export levels were restored, and there they have largely remained. This is not by chance and has taken considerable effort to maintain, and it is a balance that could be upset quickly if the importance of the Black Sea is overlooked. A Black Sea Fleet out of hiding and able to restock and rearm could upset this balance almost immediately causing war risk insurance to climb again and shipping companies to no longer take the risk. At least Russia won't be able to sail more warships in there, the Montreux Convention prevents it, but rearmament takes many forms. And besides, that convention works both ways. Most estimates are that if Ukraine lost freedom of navigation by up to 80 per cent, it would damage their overall economy by 10-12 per cent of GDP. Indirect losses could be as much as 30 per cent. They simply can't afford for this to happen again. Add in loss of influence, access and the effect on other countries who need those exports, then layer how much this all inversely helps Russia, and you can start building a case for maintaining freedom of navigation in the Black Sea being more important than the division of land being contested and now discussed. In war, most people naturally focus on the land. In peace, no one focuses on the sea until it stops working, at which point it can wreck your security and prosperity. This isn't a competition, just a plea not to ignore the sea as this conflict progresses to a conclusion, whatever form that takes, over land.
Telegraph
8 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Britain to help restart civilian flights into Ukraine after ceasefire
Britain will help restart international air travel into Ukraine after a peace deal is agreed to boost the country's economy and rebuild its independence. The Coalition of the Willing, a group of more than 30 nations supportive of Ukraine, wants to establish 'normal' flying conditions in the event of a ceasefire. Royal Air Force fighter jets are due to join planes from other European nations in policing the skies to make sure that Russia does not launch a second full-scale invasion. But a secondary aim will be to once again reinstate international travel in and out of Ukrainian cities. A similar effort will be made to reopen Ukraine's ports by accelerating ongoing efforts to clear the Black Sea of mines. The ambitions show an additional feature of the West's hopes of rebuilding Ukraine into not just a secure and strong nation after the fighting ends, but an economically thriving one. There would also be upsides for European travellers, who for more than three years have experienced longer journeys as planes divert around the Ukrainian border. In the sky over Europe, from Portugal to Ukraine, the flight radar shows a striking contrast. Busy air routes full of passenger planes gradually give way to an empty horizon. — (@ukraine_ua) August 14, 2025 Planning for how Europe can do more to protect Ukraine's independence if there is a deal with Russia has been going on intensively for months. Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron, the French president, have been taking the lead on the drive, with a joint headquarters being set up in Paris. The coalition has put an emphasis that nations reluctant to take part in peace-keeping efforts should not hold back others more ready to act. The coalition will also consider how to ensure Russia will not restock its military after a ceasefire is declared, which could enable a second full-scale invasion in the future. The Prime Minister committed to the consideration of putting British 'boots on the ground and planes in the air', though the idea of a mass UK deployment to man any new border has faded. Instead, hundreds of British military trainers and engineers will be sent into Ukraine to help rebuild its armed forces. The first deployments are expected to take place within a week of a ceasefire, with the UK presence ramping up in the weeks after that. Allies would fly planes over Ukraine to patrol the skies and deter a second Russian invasion, under the plans. The UK is willing to provide Eurofighter Typhoons and F-35s. This would also allow commercial air travel to resume. In July, the UK Government said planes from the coalition would provide 'air policing, reassuring the Ukrainian population and establishing the conditions for normal international air travel to re-commence'. Alongside this will be an effort to create 'safer seas' around Ukraine. The Black Sea Task Force, which was set up by Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria, would be bolstered with specialist staff to more quickly clear mines in the water. The UK Government said this drive would 'ensure safe and secure maritime access for all vessels transiting to and from Ukraine ports'. The resumption of more normal air travel and port activity would provide a boost to the Ukrainian economy at a time when Kyiv wants to rebuild its military. Other companies and travellers in Europe could benefit too. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) noted in its 2025 annual report: 'The ongoing war in Ukraine also has affected air transport in various ways. 'Twenty per cent of European airspace has been closed and Russian airspace overflight rights withdrawn for most Western airlines, requiring the re-routing of long-haul flights to Asia.' How quickly private airline companies would be willing to fly once again both over and into Ukraine, even with the coalition patrols, remains to be seen.
The Sun
8 minutes ago
- The Sun
Putin general, 57, ‘has arm and leg amputated' as he fights for life after Ukrainian strike on Russian column in Kursk
A TOP Putin general is fighting for his life after a brutal Ukrainian strike blew up a Russian column in Kursk – reportedly leaving him with devastating injuries and multiple amputations. Lt-Gen Esedulla Abachev, 57, was hit on the Rylsk–Khomutovka highway in the Kursk region early on Saturday, according to Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR). 7 7 7 The decorated officer – deputy commander of Russia's North Group of Forces – was urgently airlifted to the Vishnevsky Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow where surgeons amputated an arm and a leg, the Kyiv Post reported. A pro-Moscow source admitted: 'He is alive, but in serious condition [after] traumatic amputation of the arm and part of the leg.' Ukrainian forces also blew up an ammo depot in occupied Melitopol a day earlier, killing marines and fighters from Ramzan Kadyrov's notorious 'Akhmat-Vostok' Chechen unit. HUR gloated: 'There will be just retribution for every war crime against the Ukrainian people.' Bloody track record Abachev has been at the heart of nearly every Kremlin war in recent decades. He graduated from the Kharkiv Higher Tank Command School in 1989 before fighting in the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, the Second Chechen War, Russia's 2008 invasion of Georgia, and the terror campaign in Syria. 'For each of these 'bloody feats,' Abachev was personally awarded the Order of Courage by Putin,' reported Since 2022, Abachev has played a major role in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, commanding the 2nd Army Corps of the so-called 'Luhansk People's Republic.' Ukraine cut Putin's two-pronged frontline breach in HALF in wake of Trump summit Ukrainian sources accuse him of war crimes against civilians in Lysychansk. Putin himself previously decorated Abachev with the Hero of Russia – Gold Star for 'courage and heroism.' He also received an award from occupied Luhansk for his role in the bloody takeover. In August last year, amid surging Ukrainian cross-border operations, he was appointed commander of Russia's border-cover group in the Kursk direction – where he was now taken out. Humiliating blows The strike on Abachev is just the latest in a string of humiliating Ukrainian hits on Putin's top brass. Maj. Gen. Mikhail Gudkov – Russia's Deputy Navy Chief and another Hero of Russia – was killed in July during a suspected HIMARS strike on a command post in Kursk. In April, Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik was eliminated near Moscow. 7 7 Ukrainian Telegram channels have already circulated footage allegedly showing the burning wrecks of the Russian convoy in Kursk after Abachev's column was smashed. The attack comes as Kremlin forces in Kursk push to seize territory across the border – with Zelensky facing mounting pressure to concede ground to Putin to secure a peace deal. Analysts say Kyiv is intensifying strikes on senior commanders to weaken Moscow's chain of command and sap morale on the frontline. Each successful hit is seen as both a psychological and tactical blow for Putin's faltering war machine. Has the Alaska summit helped broker a peace deal? AS Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin both flew out of Alaska on Friday it appeared as though the summit was an utter failure in the eyes of Ukraine. There had been no agreements on a peace deal as Trump appeared to be hesitant to truly reveal what demands Putin was making. But a few hours after the meeting ended Trump took to social media to reveal the meeting was a success in his eyes. Trump said Russia and Ukraine both believe a full peace deal is "the best way" to end the war - rather than a short term ceasefire. Now diplomatic sources have revealed some of the initial details of the potential agreement, according to news agency AFP. The US has reportedly proposed an agreement that would see Ukraine not join Nato - but instead be offered Nato-esque protections similar to Article 5. Article 5 on Nato's founding treaty agrees collective defense - meaning allies see an attack on one as an attack on all of them. Trump reportedly floated the plan with Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders during a call after his meeting with Putin. The US President is set to discuss the terms of an agreement with Zelensky on Monday when he travels to the White House. Zelensky did not directly address any potential plan but he did say on X: "We discussed positive signals from the American side regarding participation in guaranteeing security for Ukraine."
