European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will hold talks with the U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday in a bid to secure Ukraine’s interests before his high-stakes meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
Zelenskyy is expected in Berlin, Germany, to join a video conference hosted by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, a government source told AFP.
The talks will also involve French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, leaders from Finland, Italy, and Poland, as well as the heads of the European Union and NATO.
In a second round of the discussions, Trump and Vice President JD Vance will join the call.
The Trump-Putin meeting is scheduled to proceed without Zelenskyy’s participation, and this has heightened fears in Ukraine of being pushed into ceding part of its territory to Russia.
On Tuesday, EU leaders reaffirmed “Ukraine’s inherent right to choose its own destiny” and insisted that “international borders must not be changed by force.”
Speaking to reporters, Zelenskyy dismissed reported plans to pull Ukrainian forces from the Donbas region, which Russia claims belongs to them.
Merz’s office said Wednesday’s discussions will focus on “further options to exert pressure on Russia” and on preparing “possible peace negotiations and related issues of territorial claims and security.”
The British, French, and German leaders are also expected to meet separately later in the day as part of the so-called “coalition of the willing” backing Ukraine’s military.
Trump on Monday downplayed expectations for a breakthrough in Alaska, describing the meeting with Putin as “a feel-out” session, though he hinted that “there’ll be some swapping, there’ll be some changes in land” in any eventual settlement.
Russia has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its forces from regions claimed by Russia, adopt neutral status, reject U.S. and EU military support, and abandon its NATO ambitions.
However, Ukraine insists it will never recognise Russian sovereignty over any part of its territory, though it concedes that reclaiming occupied land would likely require diplomacy rather than force.
On Tuesday, Ukraine reported “difficult” battles in the east, with Russian forces making rapid gains in a key section of the front line.
Zelenskyy warned that Russia appeared to be preparing for new offensive operations, signalling no intention of ending the war.
EU officials fear that the Alaska talks could open the door to a “one-sided” territorial swap which they are trying to avert.
