In a statement released on Tuesday morning, 12 August, the leaders of 26 of the EU’s 27 countries welcome the efforts of President Trump towards ending Russia’s war against Ukraine. The release also calls for a ’just peace’ and stresses that the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.
It was not an easy meeting. The virtual conference of EU foreign ministers called by Kaja Kallas, EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, started on Monday, 11 August afternoon, and lasted several hours. The leaders chiefly discussed the EU’s position ahead of the summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin which is scheduled for Friday, 15 August. The official statement was released only on Tuesday morning.
Of the 27 EU member states, 26 of them virtually signed the statement—the only holdout was Hungary. That is hardly surprising, as Budapest routinely abstains when it comes to positions towards Ukraine or sanctions against Russia.
“International borders must not be changed by force,” the statement says. And sanctions were also on the table. “We work on more sanctions against Russia, more military support for Ukraine and more support for Ukraine’s budgetary needs and accession process to join the EU,” Ms Kallas stressed during the meeting.
Who should withdraw from where?
The first information on the Putin-Trump summit surfaced on Saturday, 9 August. The announcement had been made by President Trump on his social media platform Truth Social. The Kremlin confirmed the meeting shortly afterwards.
International borders must not be changed by force. — Leaders of 26 EU member states
Details of the high profile meeting, supposed to be held in Alaska, US, are currently shrouded in a fog of uncertainity. It remains unclear whether the Ukrainian president would be part of the negotiations and if so, what format the meeting will take.
Media keep speculating that President Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, who had travelled to Moscow last week for high-level talks including with the Russian president, may have misinterpreted Russia’s position ahead of the talks.
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Witkoff had originally announced that ‘peaceful withdrawal from Kherson and Zaporizhia’ means that Russian soldiers would withdraw. It seems, however, that Putin’s real intention is the complete opposite—that Ukrainians should withdraw from the respective regions.
Merz calls for another meeting on Wednesday
On Monday afternoon, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called a virtual meeting for Wednesday to discuss the upcoming Putin-Trump summit. This meeting should be attended online by US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and European leaders. From Europe, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Council President António Costa, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, and the political leaders of Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom are expected to participate.
The leaders will discuss further options for putting pressure on Russia. — Stefan Kornelius, German government’s spokesman
“The leaders will discuss further options for putting pressure on Russia. In addition, they should also talk about preparations for possible peace talks and related issues of territorial claims and security,” Stefan Kornelius, the German government’s spokesman, explained.
