Washington, D.C.: European and Ukrainian leaders met in a virtual conference with U.S. President Donald Trump today, just two days before his highly anticipated summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. The meeting’s primary goal was to ensure Ukraine’s interests are protected and to prevent an unfavorable deal from being struck between the two leaders.
The call, hosted by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, included Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the leaders of Finland, France, Britain, Italy, and Poland, as well as the head of the European Union and NATO’s secretary general. The meeting was intended to serve as a European counterweight to the upcoming U.S.-Russia summit.
The summit in Alaska, set for this Friday, marks the first U.S.-Russia summit since 2021. President Trump has framed the meeting as a “feel-out” in his efforts to end the Russo-Ukraine war. His previous remarks that both Kyiv and Moscow would need to cede land to end the conflict have fueled anxieties among European and Ukrainian officials, who fear they could be coerced into an unfavorable agreement. Russia currently occupies nearly a fifth of Ukraine’s territory.
A senior official from Eastern Europe stated, “We are focusing now to ensure that it does not happen—engaging with U.S. partners and staying coordinated and united on the European side.”
The White House has attempted to temper expectations, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt calling the summit a “listening exercise” for Trump to understand what a deal would entail. A source familiar with U.S. deliberations acknowledged that while a direct deal between Trump and Putin without Europe or Ukraine could not be ruled out, it was considered unlikely to proceed without causing significant issues with the allies.
On the ground, battlefield pressure is mounting. Moscow’s troops have recently increased their offensive, tightening their control on the cities of Pokrovsk and Kostyantynivka in eastern Ukraine. President Zelenskiy has stated that Ukraine cannot agree to any deal that would require it to withdraw troops from the Donbas region, as this would compromise a vast defensive network and pave the way for future Russian aggression. He maintains that territorial issues can only be discussed after a ceasefire is established and Ukraine receives solid security guarantees.
A Gallup poll released last week found that 69% of Ukrainians favor a negotiated end to the war as soon as possible, but polls also indicate a strong public opposition to making significant territorial concessions for peace.