German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that U.S. President Donald Trump "largely shares" the European stance on the conditions for a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, following a virtual meeting between Trump and European leaders on Wednesday.
“Fundamental European and Ukrainian security interests must be safeguarded in Alaska. That was the message we, as Europeans, conveyed to U.S. President Trump today,” Merz said after the virtual summit with Trump, standing alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Berlin, News.Az reports citing Politico.
Trump, said Merz, is familiar with European positions and “largely shares them.”
Zelenskyy traveled to Berlin on Wednesday to join European leaders for three rounds of virtual talks arranged by Germany’s Merz aimed at persuading Trump to defend the interests of Ukraine and Europe in advance of the president’s hotly anticipated summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday in Alaska.
European leaders had become increasingly nervous about the Alaska meeting after Trump said Monday that a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine would require “land swapping” in which Russia would reportedly keep regions it has captured and also some territory it has not yet fully occupied.
Zelenskyy has rejected that idea and is calling for strong U.S. sanctions against Russia. Ukraine’s European allies are pushing for Kyiv’s position to be taken into account during the negotiations in Alaska.
Merz and his European counterparts were looking to convey their joint position to Trump on Wednesday, which entailed three main principles, a government spokesperson in Berlin told reporters before the meeting.
First, that Ukraine must be included at the negotiating table. Second, that a ceasefire must be reached before negotiations can take place. And third, that Ukraine must be able to rely on security guarantees before any further progress is made. The spokesperson also said that a peace agreement “in our view is still a long way off.”
Merz and Zelenskyy were set to convene for a third round of talks with counterparts in the so-called coalition of the willing — an alliance of more than 30 nations, including most European Union member countries, that have pledged to uphold a potential peace agreement — later Wednesday.
