Trump, Zelenskyy, Merz, and other European leaders have spoken ahead of talks with Putin.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said after the online summit that, in the opinion of European leaders, the Alaska meeting should be about fundamental Ukrainian and European security interests. This message was sent to the American president. “We made it clear that Ukraine should sit at the negotiating table if there is another meeting after this one. We want the right sequence. This means a ceasefire first, and it should be at the very beginning. An important element could be a framework agreement that will come later”, Merz added.

Also according to Merz, Ukraine is ready to discuss territorial issues, but the starting point will be the contact line. Legal recognition of the occupied territories is not under discussion. Reliable security guarantees for Ukraine are also an important condition; Trump shares this view.

French President Emmanuel Macron said after meeting that the US “wish” during the summit with Putin is to achieve a ceasefire. President Zelenskyy also hopes for this, and together with Macron stressed that all negotiations regarding Ukraine should be discussed with Ukraine, including territorial discussions.

The Ukrainian president added that during the online summit it was also discussed that Russia cannot receive veto rights regarding Ukraine’s accession to NATO or the EU.