Before the start of the negotiations, Starmer said that “Ukraine’s issues are issues for Ukraine.” The British Prime Minister noted that today's negotiations are “a critical stage in the progress towards peace.”
According to Zelensky, “very important things today are… unity between Europe, Ukraine and the United States.”
Merz stressed that he was “skeptical about some of the details in the documents coming from the United States,” but added that this is why the leaders gathered today.
The German chancellor said: “This could be a decisive time for all of us, which is why we are trying to continue our support for Ukraine […] The fate of Ukraine is the fate of Europe.”
According to Macron, “the Russian economy is starting to suffer, especially after the latest sanctions.” The French president assured: “We have a lot of cards in our hands” (quote from The Guardian). Macron stressed that the leaders gathered in London “all support Ukraine” and “all support peace.”
Context
Addressed on December 7 by the President of Ukraine announced new negotiations around the world, promising to meet in London and Brussels. Zelensky stated that he was waiting for the “correct negotiating positions” from the European Union and the United States.
The Ukrainian and US delegations have already held seven rounds of negotiations on a “peace plan” for resolving the Russian-Ukrainian war. In parallel, the American side is discussing the same issue with the aggressor country of the Russian Federation.
Thus, on December 2, the illegitimate Russian President Vladimir Putin, the special envoy of US President Donald Trump Steve Witkoff and the son-in-law of the head of the White House Jared Kushner at negotiations in Moscow for about five hours discussed several “peace plan” projects to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian war, Putin’s assistant Yuri Ushakov reported after the meeting. According to him, in the territorial issue “no compromise was found.” One of the key issues at the negotiations was Ukraine’s membership in NATO, Ushakov pointed out.
On December 3, Trump opined that Putin “would like to end the war.” However, on December 4, Putin said that the Russian Federation would allegedly “in any case” seize the Ukrainian Donbass and other territories of southern Ukraine – “military or other means.” Putin's new statements indicate that he does not intend to retreat from his maximalist goals in the war against Ukraine, Politico explained.
In transcripts of telephone conversations between European leaders published on December 4 by Spiegel, the latter questioned US peacekeeping initiatives. EU leaders warned Zelensky that The US can betray Ukraine and Europe. They noted that the Ukrainian president must be “extremely careful in the coming days.”
The media reported that there are three pillars regarding which the Russian Federation will not agree to a compromise in peace negotiations on Ukraine: the territory of Donbass, limiting the number of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and recognition of the occupied territories of Ukraine by America and Europe.
