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European leaders to join Zelenskyy when he meets Trump at the White House

European leaders to join Zelenskyy when he meets Trump at the White House

Irish Examiner8 hours ago
European leaders will join Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy when he meets Donald Trump for peace talks at the White House on Monday.
Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, German chancellor Friedrich Merz and Finnish president Alexander Stubb were the first leaders to confirm they will join Mr Zelensky in Washington DC.
Mr Zelenskyy's Oval Office rendezvous with the US president will take place after Western allies meet for a coalition of the willing video call on Sunday afternoon.
The call will be hosted by British leader Keir Starmer, France's Emmanuel Macron and Mr Merz.
Downing Street would not comment on whether Sir Keir plans to travel to Washington to join other European leaders on Monday.
The show of unity by European leaders comes as Mr Trump appears poised to urge the Ukrainian leader to agree to a Russian land grab of his country's territory, according to reports.
Several news outlets have reported Russian president Vladimir Putin has demanded full control of Donetsk and Luhansk – two occupied Ukrainian regions – as a condition for ending the war.
In exchange, he would give up other Ukrainian territories held by Russian troops, several news outlets said, attributing sources familiar with Mr Putin and Mr Trump's negotiations in Alaska on Friday.
Mr Trump is said to be inclined to support the plan, and will speak to Mr Zelenskyy about it when they meet in the Oval Office
The European leaders may also fear a repeat of Mr Zelenskyy's last visit to the White House at the end of February.
The tumultuous spat resulted in a souring of relations between the US and Ukraine.
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