The chief aim of the summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin scheduled for Friday is to reach a permanent ceasefire in the Ukraine, US President Donald Trump said during an online meeting with European leaders on Wednesday, 13 August. According to Mr Trump, territorial issues will be for Ukraine to decide.
A series of high-profile online political meetings are taking place on Wednesday, 13 August. They were iniciated by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The first video conference began at 2 p.m. when Mr Merz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Polish President Karol Nawrocki, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Finnish President Alexander Stubb. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Council President António Costa, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte were also present.
During this first online meeting, European leaders sought to unify their positions ahead of subsequent talks with US President Trump and his Vice President JD Vance. Zelenskyy’s presence came as a suprise, the Ukrainian President had arrived to Berlin shortly before the meeting started.
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Later, European leaders were talking with Mr Trump and his Vice-President JD Vance.
Ceasefire first, possible territorial swaps later
“We want Trump to be successful when he meets Putin in Alaska. European and Ukrainian security interests, however, must be upheld in Alaska,” the German Chancellor said to media representatives shortly after the online meeting with Trump had ended. “We want negotiations to take place in the right order; a ceasefire must come first. Essential elements should then be agreed in a framework agreement,” Mr Merz added. He also said that there was no question of legally recognizing Russian territorial holdings.
Negotiations must take place in the right order. Ceasefire must come first. — Friedrich Merz, German Chancellor
According to French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump told European leaders that the aim of the Putin summit was first of all to reach a permanent ceasefire.
Sanctions still on the table
Earlier on Wednesday, Scott Bessent, Donald Trump’s Treasury Secretary, shared at least some details on how the Friday meeting could unfold. “[President Donald Trump] will make it clear to president Putin that all options are on the table (…) If talks don’t go as planned, then sanctions or secondary tariffs could go up,” said Mr Bessent. However, he did not explain what the “plan” looked like.
Shortly before the online meting started, Mr Trump had sent a sort of an optimistic message by praising European politicians. “Will be speaking to European Leaders in a short while. They are great people who want to see a deal done,” the US President wrote on his social network Truth Social.
Russia’s demands remain unchanged
Also on Wednesday, the Kremlin said its stance on ending the war has not changed since Vladimir Putin outlined his conditions last year. In other words, Moscow is still demanding the full withdrawal of Ukrainian military forces from key Ukrainian regions. Russia also insists that Kyiv must abandon its NATO ambitions.
“Our position remains unchanged. It was voiced in this very hall just over a year ago, on 14 June 2024,” the Russian foreign ministry’s deputy spokesperson, Alexei Fadeev, reiterated.
Russia currently controls about 20 per cent of Ukrainian territory and its army is advancing in the western direction west but steadily. According to The Institute for the Study of War’ (ISW) estimate, Russia has conquered some 700 square kilometres of Ukrainian territory over the past month.
