European leaders rally behind Ukraine as White House open to inviting Zelenskyy to Trump-Putin meeting
The statement, signed by the president of the European Union and the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland and the United Kingdom, stated that the "path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine."
The group stressed the need for a "just and lasting peace" for Kyiv, including "robust and credible" security guarantees.
"Ukraine has the freedom of choice over its own destiny. Meaningful negotiations can only take place in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities," the statement said.
The statement by top European leaders — who also said they "welcome President Trump's work to stop the killing in Ukraine — came after Mr. Trump announced he would meet with Putin one-on-one in Alaska on Friday, Aug. 15, following weeks of U.S. pressure on Russia to cut a ceasefire deal. It's the first face-to-face meeting between Putin and an American leader since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in early 2022.
Two sources told CBS News Saturday that Mr. Trump is still willing to meet jointly with Zelenskyy and Putin — but the meeting currently remains bilateral, as Putin requested.
Mr. Trump also said last week that he expects "some swapping of territories" between Ukraine and Russia. The Russian military occupies large parts of eastern Ukraine, and Russia has indicated that it wants Ukraine to cede those territories — which Zelenskyy has pushed back on.
The Europeans wrote in their statement: "We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force. The current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations."
Zelenskyy thanked the Europeans for their statement, saying in a post on X that he is "grateful to everyone who stands with Ukraine." The Ukrainian president previously brushed off the planned Putin-Trump summit, writing that any peace deal that excludes Ukraine "will never work."
Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance met Saturday with top European and Ukrainian officials at the British Foreign Secretary's weekend residence to discuss how to end the war.
The Trump-Putin meeting may prove pivotal in a war that began when Russia invaded its western neighbor and has led to tens of thousands of deaths, although there's no guarantee it will stop the fighting since Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on their conditions for peace.
A monthlong U.S.-led push to achieve a truce in Ukraine has so far proved fruitless, with Kyiv agreeing in principle while Moscow has held out for terms more to its liking.
Mr. Trump had also moved up an ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and introduce secondary tariffs targeting countries that buy Russian oil if the Kremlin did not move toward a settlement. The deadline was Friday. The White House did not answer questions on Saturday about possible sanctions.
The Kremlin earlier this week reiterated demands that Ukraine give up territory, abandon its bid to join NATO and accept limits on its military, in exchange for a withdrawal of Russian troops from the rest of the country.
Zelenskyy said Saturday that Ukraine "will not give Russia any awards for what it has done" and that "Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier."
Ukrainian officials previously told the Associated Press privately that Kyiv would be amenable to a peace deal that would de facto recognize Ukraine's inability to regain lost territories militarily. But Zelenskyy on Saturday insisted that formally ceding land was out of the question.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Newsweek
8 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Ukraine's Zelensky Says Putin Will Benefit From Trump Meeting in 3 Ways
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a new interview Tuesday that he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin will benefit from his upcoming summit with President Donald Trump in three key ways. Why It Matters Trump and Putin are slated to meet in Alaska on Friday to discuss bringing an end to Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine, which Putin launched in February 2022. The White House said the Russian strongman reached out to request the meeting and that Zelensky has not been invited. The Trump administration has also sought to temper expectations around the president's meeting with Putin. Trump said in the past that he would end the Russia-Ukraine war within 24 hours of being elected or shortly after being inaugurated. Neither promise has come to fruition and the White House this week framed talks between Trump and Putin as a "listening exercise" and a "fact-finding" mission. U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands at the conclusion of their joint news conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland, on July 16, 2018. U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands at the conclusion of their joint news conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland, on July 16, 2018. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP What To Know Zelensky was asked by NewsNation on Tuesday what he believes Putin will take away from his meeting with Trump. The Ukrainian leader didn't mince words, telling the outlet, "I believe that Putin will benefit from this, because what he is seeking, frankly, is photographs. He needs a photo from a meeting with President Trump." Zelensky continued: "First, he will be meeting on U.S. soil, which I believe is his personal victory. Second, he is coming out of isolation because he is meeting on U.S. soil. Third, with this meeting, he has somehow postponed the sanctions policy. President Trump has serious sanctions, and we are very much looking forward to these sanctions." "We will see what happens next," he added. Indeed, the Trump administration's decision to allow Putin into the country is striking, given that the Russian leader has been accused of war crimes against Ukraine by the International Criminal Court. That the meeting will take place in Alaska—which Russia sold to the U.S. for a little over $7 million in 1867—adds another layer of significance. Putin's meeting with Trump will be the first time the Russian leader has met with an American president since June 2021, when he encountered then-President Joe Biden for a bilateral summit. Russia invaded Ukraine less than eight months later, cementing Putin's status as a pariah in the Western world. Trump addressed the upcoming meeting with his Russian counterpart while speaking to reporters last week and suggested that there would be "swapping of territories" between Russia and Ukraine. Zelensky flatly rejected the notion, saying that Ukrainians "will not give their land to an occupier." The Ukrainian leader's refusal to cede land to Russia irked Trump, who said Monday that he disagreed "very, very severely" with him. "I get along with Zelensky, but, you know, I disagree with what he's done," Trump told reporters at the White House. "Very, very severely disagree. This is a war that should have never happened." Zelensky spoke by phone with Trump, special envoy Steve Witkoff and European leaders on Tuesday. After the call, the Ukrainian president said he was told Russia is showing signs that it may want to end the war. "During the call, there was a signal from Mr. Witkoff, who was also on the call, that Russia is ready to end the war, or at least to make a first step toward a ceasefire, and that this was the first such signal from them," Zelensky said. "Everyone on the call felt positive about this, that there was some kind of shift." But he emphasized that it was still unclear to him what Putin may have told Witkoff regarding a cessation of hostilities. Trump's announcement on Friday about a meeting with Putin came as the Kremlin's army slowly advances deeper into Ukraine—in defiance of demands from Trump and other Western leaders to cease attacks on civilian locales, according to the Associated Press (AP). Russia and Ukraine are also far apart on their terms for peace. Zelensky has refused to agree to a ceasefire deal that doesn't include security guarantees for his country, while Putin demands Ukraine be shut out from NATO and cede to Russia four territories Moscow claims it annexed. Ukrainian soldiers on the battlefield have also expressed little hope for a diplomatic solution to the war. What People Are Saying Zelensky wrote on Telegram: Putin "is definitely not preparing for a ceasefire or an end to the war. Putin is determined only to present a meeting with America as his personal victory and then continue acting exactly as before, applying the same pressure on Ukraine as before. "So far, there is no indication whatsoever that the Russians have received signals to prepare for a post-war situation. On the contrary, they are redeploying their troops and forces in ways that suggest preparations for new offensive operations. If someone is preparing for peace, this is not what he does." A Ukrainian Spartan Brigade drone unit commander with the call sign Buda told the AP he doesn't think Russia is interested in peace, adding: "It is impossible to negotiate with them. The only option is to defeat them. I would like them to agree and for all this to stop, but Russia will not agree to that. It does not want to negotiate. So the only option is to defeat them." A howitzer commander with the call sign Warsaw in Ukraine's southern Zaporizhzhia region, told the AP: "We are on our land, we have no way out. So we stand our ground, we have no choice." What Happens Next Trump and Zelensky will speak on the phone Wednesday, with European leaders joining the call. Putin has also briefed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un about his meeting with Trump in Anchorage, according to Russian state media. Moscow and Pyongyang have strengthened their strategic partnership since Russia invaded Ukraine and North Korea has sent troops to fight alongside Russian soldiers on the front lines. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also left open the possibility that Trump could travel to Russia at some point, telling reporters on Tuesday that "perhaps" the American president will visit Putin in his home country down the road. The Associated Press contributed reporting to this article.
Wall Street Journal
8 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
National Guard Troops Begin Arriving in D.C. After Trump Deployment
President Trump has deployed roughly 800 members of the National Guard to the nation's capital and taken the city's police department under federal control. Photo: Annabelle Gordon/Reuters
Wall Street Journal
8 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
The Partisan Economist Trump Wants to Oversee the Nation's Data
Conservative economist Erwin John 'E.J.' Antoni sometimes jokes on social media that the 'L' in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' acronym is silent. President Trump this week tapped Antoni to run the agency whose data and methodologies he has long criticized, especially when it produces numbers that Trump doesn't like. He recently proposed suspending the monthly jobs report, one of the most important data releases for the economy and markets. On Tuesday a White House official noted that Antoni made the comment before he knew he was going to be chosen, and that his comments don't reflect official BLS policy.
