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European leaders have said they are “ready to work with US President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy towards a trilateral summit with European support,” in a statement issued by the European Commission on Saturday.
“It will be up to Ukraine to make decisions on its territory. International borders must not be changed by force,” the statement read, which was released a few hours after the conclusion of a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The statement was signed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and European Council President António Costa.
Several leaders of the so-called Coalition of the Willing will meet via a video call with Zelenskyy on Sunday ahead of the Ukrainian President’s visit to Washington, the French presidency office said in a statement.
The group of 31 countries was set up to safeguard a potential deal to end Russia’s war on Ukraine, a task that took on sudden urgency after Donald Trump caught Europe off guard by unilaterally launching negotiations with Vladimir Putin.
Macron, Merz and Starmer will be present for the meeting, it added.
They said they “welcomed President Trump’s efforts to stop the killing in Ukraine, end Russia’s war of aggression, and achieve just and lasting peace,” following the US President’s meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
The leaders insisted on “ironclad security guarantees” for Ukraine, with “no limitations” on Ukraine’s armed forces. “Russia cannot have a veto against Ukraine‘s pathway to EU and NATO.”
The statement also reiterated a pledge to continue to impose sanctions on Russia “as long as the killing in Ukraine continues”.
Zelenskyy calls for ‘real peace’
Zelenskyy echoed the European statement in a post on X, calling for “real peace” and “not just another pause between Russian invasions.”
He added that he told Trump “sanctions should be strengthened if there is no trilateral meeting or if Russia tries to evade an honest end to the war.”
He also reiterated the importance of involving European leaders, who also were not present at the summit.
Other European leaders responded more fiercely to the outcome of Friday’s summit in Alaska.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Espend Barth Eide told reporters in Oslo Putin’s talking points were “code for the Russian justification for the illegal invasion of Ukraine.”
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said in a statement that “Putin is still only interested in the greatest possible territorial gains and the restoration of the Soviet empire.”
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said “the harsh reality is that Russia has no intention of ending this war anytime soon,” noting that Moscow’s forces launched new attacks on Ukraine even as the delegations met.
“Putin continues to drag out negotiations and hopes he gets away with it. He left Anchorage without making any commitments to end the killing,” she said.
Meanwhile Zelenskyy is set to arrive in Brussels on Sunday where he will meet with Ursula von der Leyen. The pair will participate in the video conference with Macron, Merz and Starmer together.
In a post on X, von der Leyen says she will also be participating in Zelenskyy’s White House meeting with Trump on Monday along with other European leaders, at the Ukrainian leader’s request.
