France, Germany and Britain will meet on Sunday to help shape Ukraine’s position before President Zelenskyy holds high-stakes talks with Donald Trump in Washington.
The virtual summit, set for 1300 GMT, brings together French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who are seeking to reinforce Kyiv’s hand amid pressure from the U.S. to accept a peace deal with Moscow.
The European powers want security guarantees for Ukraine with U.S. involvement and are aiming to set up a trilateral summit involving Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, diplomatic sources said.
The move follows Trump’s meeting with Putin in Alaska on Friday, where the Russian leader reportedly offered to freeze the front lines in exchange for Kyiv ceding all of the Donetsk region. A source familiar with the discussions said Zelenskyy rejected the proposal.
"Stopping the killing is a key element of stopping the war," Zelenskyy said on X, responding to Russia’s refusal to pause hostilities.
Trump, who reversed his earlier stance on demanding a ceasefire, has said Ukraine should “make a deal” because “Russia is a very big power, and they're not.”
Ukraine's air force said Russia launched 60 drones and one ballistic missile overnight; 40 of the drones were intercepted or jammed.
Zelenskyy is scheduled to meet Trump in Washington on Monday. European leaders may accompany him and are expected to offer strategic advice. Merz said he believed the meeting would be less confrontational than Zelenskyy’s previous Oval Office visit in February, which saw public rebukes from both Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
Despite European unity, Merz noted that the U.S. still held the key to shifting Moscow’s position. "The American president has the power both militarily and via appropriate sanctions and tariffs to ensure that Russia moves more than it currently does," he told ZDF.
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. It currently controls about a fifth of Ukrainian territory, including much of Donetsk, which it partially occupied as early as 2014.
Former UK national security adviser Mark Lyall Grant called the Alaska summit a “clear win” for Putin, citing Trump’s retreat from demanding a ceasefire. Still, he said U.S. engagement in long-term security guarantees for Ukraine was “absolutely critical”.
The Russia-Ukraine war is increasingly reshaping the Caspian region. From threats to energy infrastructure to renewed diplomatic efforts, countries ac...
A known Islamist suspected of driving a minivan into a crowd near a major LGBTQ Pride gathering in Berlin was shot dead during a police operation at a...
Ship traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait fell to its lowest level in months on Sunday after Yemen's Houthi movement attacked Saudi oil facilities...
Iran will halt its own attacks as long as the United States maintains its pause on strikes, but Tehran remains sceptical of U.S. intentions, a senior Iranian source told on Sunday.
Ship traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait fell to its lowest level in months on Sunday after Yemen's Houthi movement attacked Saudi oil facilities along the Red Sea coast, while vessel movements through the Strait of Hormuz also remained subdued despite a pause in U.S.-Iran tensions.
Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called on Saturday for Russia and Ukraine to freeze the conflict and return to peace talks, saying a negotiated settlement remained possible despite the entrenched positions of both sides.
A known Islamist suspected of driving a minivan into a crowd near a major LGBTQ Pride gathering in Berlin was shot dead during a police operation at an allotment garden complex, broadcaster RBB reported on Sunday.
Marvel Studios used its return to San Diego Comic-Con to reveal several major projects, including a new Ghost Rider film starring Ryan Gosling and the long-awaited Black Panther 3.
A known Islamist suspected of driving a minivan into a crowd near a major LGBTQ Pride gathering in Berlin was shot dead during a police operation at an allotment garden complex, broadcaster RBB reported on Sunday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed laws introducing stricter financial requirements for foreign workers, as Moscow continues to tighten migration controls affecting millions of labour migrants, particularly from Central Asia.
The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen to 3,200, including 1,405 deaths, according to government data released on Sunday, highlighting the scale of an outbreak that continues to challenge health authorities and aid agencies.
The 27 July edition of Daybreak covers a pause in fighting between the U.S. and Iran, the latest developments in Russia's war against Ukraine, and mass evacuations as wildfires continue to spread across France and Spain.
French President Emmanuel Macron convened an interministerial crisis meeting on 26 July as wildfires spread across southwest France, with flames advancing to within 15 kilometres of the city of Bordeaux.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment