EU leaders rally behind Ukraine, to join Zelensky in Trump meeting
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Ahead of Zelensky’s Monday Oval Office meeting with Trump, Europe unites to secure Ukraine’s role in peace talks after the Alaska summit with Putin.
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From left, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz make a call to US President Donald Trump from Kyiv, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov)
The leaders of France, Germany, and Britain will convene virtually on Sunday to reinforce Ukraine’s negotiating position one day before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky prepares for a critical meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington.
The talks follow Trump’s Alaska summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which ended without a ceasefire deal but reset the tone of negotiations.
Moreover, several European leaders said Sunday that they will join Zelensky on Monday when he meets with President Trump at the White House, as they strive to present a united front against Russia and avoid being sidelined in talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer are among the leaders who announced they will join Zelensky in Washington. NATO’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, and Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Union’s executive arm, will also join.
This afternoon, I will welcome @ZelenskyyUa in Brussels.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) August 17, 2025
Together, we will participate in the Coalition of Willing VTC.
At the request of President Zelenskyy, I will join the meeting with President Trump and other European leaders in the White House tomorrow.
The Trump-Putin meeting, held on August 15 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, carried strong symbolic weight. Putin received an unusually warm welcome, complete with red carpet honors, and even rode with Trump in the US president’s armored limousine.
The summit included both delegation-level talks and a private one-on-one session, covering NATO, nuclear treaties, and territorial disputes over Ukraine.
Putin pressed for Ukraine’s withdrawal from the entire Donetsk region, offering to freeze frontlines in Kherson and Zaporozhye if Moscow’s demands were met. While no formal agreements were signed, Trump later described the summit as “highly productive” and advised Zelensky to “make a deal” with Russia. Putin, for his part, said discussions were “constructive” and emphasized the need to address Russia’s “legitimate concerns.”
European push for security guarantees
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will lead a joint session of the so-called “coalition of the willing” at 1300 GMT. Their priority is ensuring that Ukraine retains a voice in shaping any peace settlement and securing long-term guarantees against renewed conflicts with Russia.
“They will spell out what they consider essential in terms of security guarantees: what they can do themselves, what falls to the coalition of volunteers, and also what they expect from the United States,” a European official told Reuters, stressing the need for a “robust commitment.”
Additionally, one or more European leaders may accompany Zelensky on his flight to Washington for Monday’s Oval Office meeting with Trump, per Reuters.
Trump’s post-summit stance
Following his discussions with Putin, Trump phoned Zelensky and relayed the Kremlin’s proposal, which included freezing most front lines in exchange for Ukraine ceding all of Donetsk, according to sources. Zelensky rejected the demand outright.
We had a long and substantive conversation with @POTUS. We started with one-on-one talks before inviting European leaders to join us. This call lasted for more than an hour and a half, including about an hour of our bilateral conversation with President Trump.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 16, 2025
Ukraine reaffirms… pic.twitter.com/64IPVhtFaB
Trump also signaled a shift in approach, aligning with Putin in suggesting that a peace deal could be reached without a ceasefire, contradicting earlier statements in which he insisted on halting hostilities before negotiations.
European and international reactions
The Alaska summit drew mixed reviews internationally. European leaders expressed concern that Trump had softened his position. A joint statement by Macron, Merz, and Starmer insisted that Russia must not be granted veto power over Ukraine’s NATO or EU aspirations and called for “ironclad security guarantees”.
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský rejected Putin’s framing of the war, stating, “The root cause is Russian aggression, not Ukraine’s desire to live freely.” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned that “Russia has no intention of ending this war anytime soon,” while Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stressed that “Russia respects only strength.”
Globally, reactions varied. Leaders from India, Hungary, and Italy praised the summit for opening dialogue, while Canada highlighted Trump’s willingness to consider security guarantees for Ukraine.
Zelenskiy’s fraught relations with Trump
Zelensky's previous encounter with Trump in February ended with a very public confrontation in which Trump and Vice President JD Vance berated him. European leaders quickly rallied behind Zelenskiy after that episode, affirming their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty.
Trump and Zelensky’s relationship has long been volatile. During his first presidency, Trump never hosted Zelensky despite promises. Instead, their phone calls became central to Trump’s first impeachment. In contrast, Zelensky has cultivated close ties with European leaders, who remain firm in rejecting any settlement that compromises Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
European capitals are now pressing for a trilateral format that would include Ukraine directly alongside the US and Russia.
