From 1h
ago
08.44 BST
European
leaders from 'coalition of the willing' to hold conference call ahead of
Zelenskyy's talks with Trump
Welcome
back to our live coverage of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
While
Washington prepares to welcome Volodymyr Zelenskyy for crunch talks with Donald
Trump on Monday, European leaders who make up the so-called “coalition of the
willing”, a loose partnership of western countries pledging support for
Ukraine, are set to hold a conference call on Sunday to try to protect a peace
deal that does not reward Russia for its aggression.
The
virtual call is being co-chaired by the UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer,
French President Emmanuel Macron and the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz.
France’s
President Emmanuel Macron (L), Germany’s chancellor Friedrich Merz (C) and the
UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer pose as they meet on the sidelines of the
Nato’s heads of state and government summit in The Hague on 24 June 2025.
France’s
President Emmanuel Macron (L), Germany’s chancellor Friedrich Merz (C) and the
UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer pose as they meet on the sidelines of the
Nato’s heads of state and government summit in The Hague on 24 June 2025.
Photograph: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images
At the
Alaska summit on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded Ukraine
withdraw from Donetsk and Luhansk as a condition for ending the war, but
offered Trump a freeze along the remaining frontline, two sources with direct
knowledge of the talks told the Guardian.
Trump
reportedly backed the plan to cede unoccupied Ukrainian territory to Russia to
secure an end to the war, telling European leaders that he believed a peace
deal could be negotiated if Zelenskyy agreed to give up the Donbas region
(which is composed of Donetsk and Luhansk).
European
leaders have repeatedly said that Zelenskyy, who has been sidelined in much of
the US-Russian diplomacy to date, must play a greater role in future talks as a
lasting peace cannot be achieved without his input.
In a
statement released on Saturday after the Alaska talks between Trump and Putin
ended without any breakthrough, Starmer said in a statement posted to X:
President
Trump’s efforts have brought us closer than ever before to ending Russia’s
illegal war in Ukraine. His leadership in pursuit of an end to the killing
should be commended.
While
progress has been made, the next steps must be further talks involving
President Zelenskyy. The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without
him.
Stay with
us as we will be keeping you up to date with the latest political and military
developments throughout the day.
Updated
at
09.05 BST
1m ago
09.53 BST
Russia
'complicating' efforts to end to war, Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Russia is complicating efforts to end
the war.
In a post
on X, he wrote:
We see
that Russia rebuffs numerous calls for a ceasefire and has not yet determined
when it will stop the killing. This complicates the situation.
If they
lack the will to carry out a simple order to stop the strikes, it may take a
lot of effort to get Russia to have the will to implement far greater –
peaceful coexistence with its neighbors for decades.
But
together we are working for peace and security. Stopping the killing is a key
element of stopping the war. Today, coordination with partners has been ongoing
throughout the day …
We are
preparing for Monday’s meeting with President Trump, and I am grateful for the
invitation.
It is
important that everyone agrees there needs to be a conversation at the level of
leaders to clarify all the details and determine which steps are necessary and
will work.
12m ago
09.42 BST
The
Ukrainian military said it had pushed Russian forces back by about 2km (1.2
miles) on part of the Sumy front in northern Ukraine.
There was
no immediate comment from Russia, which controls a little over 200 sq km in the
region, according to Ukraine’s battlefield mapping project DeepState.
36m ago
09.18 BST
US
President Donald Trump said after Friday’s meeting with his Russian
counterpart, Vladimir Putin, that he wants to bypass a ceasefire and move
straight to a permanent peace deal.
Ukrainian
and European leaders fear that a straight-to-peace deal, skipping over a
preliminary ceasefire, gives Moscow an upper hand in talks.
After
calls with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders, Trump wrote on social
media on Saturday that “it was determined by all that the best way to end the
horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement,
which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often times
do not hold up.”
With
Russia and Ukraine far apart in their demands, it is not clear how easily that
could be achieved.
We are
likely to be issued with a joint statement from the leaders of the “coalition
of the willing” on the call later – it is not clear if they will use the word
ceasefire or adopt more vague language to align themselves more with the new
American position.
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