{"id":1392267,"date":"2026-06-20T12:04:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T09:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uatv.ua\/?p=1392267"},"modified":"2026-06-19T23:32:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T20:32:51","slug":"ukraine-must-decide-who-stands-beside-it-in-talks-with-russia-merz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uatv.ua\/en\/ukraine-must-decide-who-stands-beside-it-in-talks-with-russia-merz\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine must decide who stands beside it in talks with Russia \u2014 Merz"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ukraine should determine who represents its interests and stands alongside it in any future peace negotiations with Russia, while the European Union cannot be considered a neutral mediator, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said after the European Council meeting in Brussels on June 19.<\/p>\n

Commenting on the format of potential talks, Merz stressed that the priority now is to reach an agreement on launching negotiations,\u00a0UATV English<\/a>\u00a0reports.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst and foremost, Ukraine decides who stands by its side and who negotiates. Ukraine is the party directly concerned, and ultimately it must decide who will stand beside it and who will conduct negotiations,\u201d Merz said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

According to the German chancellor, peace talks should eventually involve Ukraine, Russia, Europe, and the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho will speak for Europe does not need to be decided right now. First, we need to be united on substance. Then we will clarify the formats,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Merz emphasized that the European Union is not a neutral third party in the conflict.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe European Union is not a neutral third party and not a mediator. It is a party on Ukraine\u2019s side. Therefore, Ukraine decides who will negotiate for it and with it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The German leader noted that the E3 format comprising Germany, France, and the United Kingdom was created at Ukraine\u2019s request.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe E3 format emerged at the clear request of Ukraine. There is a certain internal logic to this: the United Kingdom, Germany, and France work closely together. These are Europe\u2019s major powers that provide substantial military support to Ukraine, with Germany now being number one by a considerable margin,\u201d Merz said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

He added that in recent days, European leaders and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had formulated key principles for future peace talks, which enjoy broad support among EU heads of state and government.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe message to Russia is clear: it is time to enter negotiations \u2014 serious negotiations. Everything now depends solely on Moscow,\u201d Merz said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

His remarks came amid renewed diplomatic efforts by European leaders to explore possible pathways toward ending Russia\u2019s war against Ukraine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ukraine should determine who represents its interests and stands alongside it in …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":1270757,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36418,13,49,36415],"tags":[78,72927],"sources":[],"class_list":["post-1392267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-11473-news-en-2","category-news","category-news-en","category-11473-news-en","tag-homepage-en","tag-peace-talks"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nUkraine must decide who stands beside it in talks with Russia \u2014 Merz - Freedom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uatv.ua\/en\/ukraine-must-decide-who-stands-beside-it-in-talks-with-russia-merz\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ukraine must decide who stands beside it in talks with Russia \u2014 Merz - 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