Today at 16:41
European leaders intend to use meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump at the G7 summit to engage him in their plans to facilitate new peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
According to UATV English, this was reported by Bloomberg.
According to sources familiar with the matter, European leaders intend to use talks with Trump during next week’s G7 summit to advance their plans for peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
The United Kingdom, France, and Germany believe that the situation in the war has shifted in Ukraine’s favor, creating an opportunity for negotiations that would go beyond the framework that emerged after Trump’s summit with Putin in Alaska last year, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The leaders of the so-called E3 countries want Russia to agree to an immediate ceasefire based on the current front line as a “starting point for negotiations” and to reliable security guarantees for Ukraine, including the deployment of multinational forces. They outlined these proposals in a joint statement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy following talks in London on Sunday.
Previously, Putin rejected a ceasefire for the purpose of holding peace negotiations, arguing that it would allow Kyiv to rearm and strengthen its defenses. He has also rejected the presence of European troops in Ukraine.
He wants Ukraine to cede the parts of the Donetsk region that remain under Kyiv’s control as part of any peace agreement. Critics of negotiating with Russia at this stage, including some officials from E3 countries, say that this position is unlikely to change in the near future.
The E3 countries see an opportunity to give Europe a greater role in shaping the negotiation process, as U.S.-led talks have reached a deadlock while Washington has shifted its focus to the conflict with Iran.
They want Trump to support their proposals to increase pressure on Russia so that it agrees to negotiations involving representatives of Europe, the United States, Ukraine, and Russia as early as next month, sources familiar with the matter said.
As part of these efforts, the United Kingdom and the European Union are working on new sanctions against Russia that will be introduced in the coming weeks, the sources added. They cautioned that the plans remain preliminary and could change.
Europe also seeks to avoid a repeat of last winter’s situation, when Ukrainians endured freezing temperatures without electricity and heating.
French President Emmanuel Macron has invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the G7 summit, which will also be attended by Donald Trump.
