Trump will have discussions with EU leaders before meeting Putin. Three topics will be addressed, announces German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
European leaders ask US President Donald Trump to convey to Vladimir Putin that Ukraine's interests must be defended and that Europe's security should not be compromised.
Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz Photo: Profimedia
No European leader was invited to the discussions on Friday, August 15, from Alaska. Trump will have a telephone call on Wednesday, August 13, with the main European leaders. This indicates that Europe exerts a certain influence. Political journalists claim that the initiator of such a meeting was German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, according to Politico.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the discussion topics will include “Options to exert pressure on Russia, possible peace negotiations, territorial claims and guarantees.” It is also known that Merz, along with other EU leaders, will insist Putin to stop the fights first, after which the negotiation process between Ukraine and Russia could begin.
After an emergency meeting of European Foreign Ministers Monday, the head of EU diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, said no concessions should be discussed before Russia accepts a complete armistice. Kallas promised that he would work on a new sanctions package, at the same time committing to continue to support Kiev financially and continue his steps to access the EU.
The German side acknowledged that the meeting was specially planned a few days before the discussions between Trump and Putin in Alaska.
EU: Any exchange of territories must be agreed with Kiev
The German Chancellor's team has made great efforts to organize the meeting. On Sunday, August 10, Friedrich Merz had a telephone conversation with the US president, asking him to intensify the pressure on Russia.
Berlin has requested new sanctions against the Russian banking sector, as well as secondary sanctions against the Kremlin allies.
According to Merz, Putin only understands the language of force and it is wrong to negotiate an exchange of territories behind Ukraine and the EU.
The online meeting will take place on August 13, at 2:00 pm, Germany time. First, for about an hour, the President of Ukraine, the Secretary General of NATO, the President of the European Commission, as well as the leaders of Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom, France, Finland and Italy will communicate between them.
The US President and Vice -President will join the conversation at 3:00 pm. At 4:30 pm the discussion will continue with the “Coalition of the Volunteers” (France, the United Kingdom and Germany).
