Common ground with US strengthened after call, says Von der Leyen
'Today Europe, the US and NATO have strengthened the common ground for Ukraine. We will remain in close coordination. Nobody wants peace more than us, a just and lasting peace,' she posted on the social media platform X after a video call that included Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
She spoke of 'a very good call' during which they exchanged views on the upcoming bilateral meeting in Alaska on Friday.
Rutte also spoke of a 'great call.' 'We are united in pushing to end to this terrible war against [Ukraine and] achieve just and lasting peace. Appreciate [Donald Trump's] leadership & close coordination with Allies. The ball is now in Putin's court,' Rutte posted on X.
The aim of the consultations between the European leaders with Trump and Zelensky was to find a common line with Trump for his meeting with Putin. (DPA)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Qatar Tribune
2 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Trump gives summit with Putin 25% chance of failure
dpa Washington US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he's giving his Friday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin a 25% chance of failure. 'There is a 25% chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting,' Trump told Fox News Radio. 'In which case I will run the country, and we have made America great again already in six months.' The US president reiterated that he views this first meeting in Alaska as primarily preparation for a second meeting. 'This meeting sets up the second meeting. The second meeting is going to be very, very important - cuz that's gonna be the meeting where they make a deal and I don't wanna use the word divvy things up but you know to a certain extend it's not a bad term, okay?' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is not invited to the summit in Alaska, has consistently opposed giving up Ukrainian territory that Russia has seized during the war launched by Moscow more than three years ago. When asked whether Russia would then face consequences such as sanctions, specifically if the tough Senate sanctions bill against Russia would be the focus, Trump responded briefly: 'Oh, certainly.' He then emphasized that the United States had not lost any soldiers in Ukraine, claiming that if he hadn't intervened, the Russian-Ukraine conflict 'could have been World War III' and repeated his oft-stated claim that his predecessor Joe Biden 'had no clue what was happening' in this war. The day before, Trump had threatened Putin with 'very serious consequences' if he refused to end hostilities after the meeting. However, the US president expressed confidence that Putin was coming to Alaska because he wanted to make a deal. He said he would find out very quickly whether that was the case.
Qatar Tribune
2 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Ukraine and Russia swap prisoners, including one freed after 4,000 days
Kiev: Ukraine and Russia have carried out another prisoner swap, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Thursday. 'A new exchange, 84 people,' Zelensky wrote on his Telegram channel on Thursday. Both soldiers and civilians are included, the Ukrainian leader said. Zelensky thanked the United Arab Emirates for its help in organizing the exchange. The Ukrainian Staff for Prisoner of War Affairs said this was the 67th exchange since the start of the war. It took place one day before US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are due to meet for a summit in the US state of Alaska. Kiev said 33 Ukrainian soldiers and 51 civilians were returned. The exchange took place on the border with Belarus. Some of the prisoners had been detained in the Moscow-controlled separatist regions of eastern Ukraine between 2014 and 2022, including three women from the Donetsk and Luhansk areas. One man was said by Kiev to have been in captivity for more than 4,000 days since 2014. Russia has confirmed the handover. The Russian Defence Ministry reported the return of 84 Russian prisoners of war. (DPA)
Qatar Tribune
2 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Indian exporters eye options to mitigate Trump's tariff salvo
Agencies Indian exporters are scrambling for options to mitigate the fallout of US President Donald Trump's threatened tariff salvo against the world's most populous nation. Many warn of dire job losses after Trump said he would double new import tariffs from 25 percent to 50 percent if India continues to buy Russian oil, in a bid to strip Moscow of revenue for its military offensive in Ukraine. 'At 50 percent tariff, no product from India can stand any competitive edge,' said economist Garima Kapoor from Elara Securities. India, one of the world's largest crude oil importers, has until August 27 to find alternatives to replace around a third of its current oil supply from abroad. While New Delhi is not an export powerhouse, it shipped goods worth about $87 billion to the United States in 2024. That 50 percent levy now threatens to upend low-margin, labor-intensive industries ranging from gems and jewelry to textiles and seafood. The Global Trade Research Initiative estimates a potential 60 percent drop in US sales in 2025 in sectors such as garments. Exporters say they are racing to fulfil orders before the deadline. 'Whatever we can ship before August 27, we are shipping,' said Vijay Kumar Agarwal, chairman of Creative Group. The Mumbai-based textile and garment exporter has a nearly 80 percent exposure to the US market. But Agarwal warned that is merely triage. Shipping goods before the deadline 'doesn't solve' the problem, he said. 'If it doesn't get resolved, there will be chaos,' he said, adding that he's worried for the future of his 15,000 to 16,000 employees. 'It is a very gloomy situation... it will be an immense loss of business.' Talks to resolve the matter hinge on geopolitics, far from the reach of business. Trump is set to meet Vladimir Putin on Friday, the first face-to-face meeting between the two countries' presidents since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. New Delhi, with longstanding ties with Moscow, is in a delicate situation. Since Trump's tariff threats, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, urging a 'peaceful resolution' to the conflict. Meanwhile, the US tariff impact is already being felt in India. Businesses say fresh orders from some US buyers have begun drying up—threatening millions of dollars in future business and the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands in the world's fifth biggest economy. Among India's biggest apparel makers with global manufacturing operations, some are looking to move their US orders elsewhere. Top exporter Pearl Global Industries has told Indian media that some of its US customers asked that orders be produced in lower-duty countries such as Vietnam or Bangladesh, where the company also has manufacturing facilities. Major apparel maker Gokaldas Exports told Bloomberg it may boost production in Ethiopia and Kenya, which have a 10 percent tariff. Moody's recently warned that for India, the 'much wider tariff gap' may 'even reverse some of the gains made in recent years in attracting related investments'. India's gems and jewelry industry exported goods worth more than $10 billion last year and employs hundreds of thousands of people. 'Nothing is happening now, everything is at a standstill, new orders have been put on hold,' Ajesh Mehta from D Navinchandra Exports told AFP. 'We expect up to 150,000 to 200,000 workers to be impacted.' Gems, and other expensive non-essential items, are vulnerable. 'A 10 percent tariff was absorbable - 25 percent is not, let alone this 50 percent,' Mehta added. 'At the end of the day, we deal in luxury products. When the cost goes up beyond a point, customers will cut back.' Seafood exporters, who have been told by some US buyers to hold shipments, are hoping for new customers. 'We are looking to diversify our markets,' says Alex Ninan, who is a partner at the Baby Marine Group. 'The United States is totally out right now. We will have to push our products to alternative markets, such as China, Japan... Russia is another market we are really looking into.' Ninan, however, warns that is far from simple. 'You can't create a market all of a sudden,' he said.
