EA on WION and BBC: Ukraine — What Next After Putin’s Humbling of Trump?

UPDATE 1847 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has posted, after the Coalition of the Willing video call with European partners:

We have to stop the killings. Putin has many demands but we do not know all of them. If there are really as many as we heard, then it will take time to go through them all. It is impossible to do this under the pressure of weapons…

We need real negotiations, which means they can start where the frontline is now. The contact line is the best line for talking. Europeans support this.

Zelensky commented on Vladimir Putin’s demand for all of the Donetsk region, including areas controlled by Ukraine:

Russia is still unsuccessful in the Donetsk region, Putin has been unable to take it for 12 years.

Ukraine’s Constitution makes it impossible to give up or trade land. Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral – Ukraine, the U.S., Russia. So far, Russia gives no sign this will happen, and if Russia refuses, new sanctions must follow.

He emphasized, “It’s important that America agrees to work with Europe to provide security guarantees for Ukraine, and therefore for all of Europe….We need security to work in practice, like Article 5 of NATO.”

UPDATE 1711 GMT:

After the Coalition of the Willing video call including Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders, European Council President António Costa has said:

French President Emmanuel Macron emphasized, ahead of Monday’s talks with Donald Trump in Washington that European allies want “Ukraine’s territorial integrity to be respected” and that “Ukraine must be represented in any talks on Ukraine’s future”

Our goal for tomorrow’s talks is to present a united front between Ukraine and its European allies….If we show weakness today in front of Russia, we are laying the ground for future conflict.

He made clear, “No country can accept the loss of territories unless it has security guarantees for its remaining territory.”

The French president added: “If we are weak today, we will pay a heavy price tomorrow … If Europe wants to be free and independent, we need to be feared and we need to be strong.”

UPDATE 1408 GMT:

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stepped back from Donald Trump’s proclamations of an imminent “peace deal”.

Rubio told the national outlet CBS News that the US will keep trying to create a scenario to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but said this might not be possible.

He emphasized that life in the US will not be fundamentally altered if the invasion is not halted.

Rubio said topics for discussion include security guarantees for Ukraine, but he indicated that the Trump Administration has abandoned the toughened sanctions on Russia and its trading partners which it threatened earlier this month:

I don’t think new sanctions on Russia are going to force him to accept the ceasefire. They’re already under very severe sanctions …

The minute you issue new sanctions, your ability to get them to the table, our ability to get them to the table will be severely diminished. That moment may arrive.

But when it comes, what you’re basically signaling is “There is no opportunity for peace at this point. So just let’s put on more sanctions and allow more people to get bombed and more people to be killed.” And that’s what we’re trying to stop.

Trump’s envoy to Russia, real estate developer Steve Witkoff, told CNN that Vladimir Putin agreed, at the Alaska meeting, to the US and European countries offering Ukraine a security guarantee which resembles NATO’s Article 5 collective defense mandate.

Rubio was more cautious and did not indicate a Russian commitment:

There’s going to have to be some security guarantees as part of [a peace deal]. How that’s structured, how that’s built, and what our role will be, that will be the kinds of things we’ll have to work through.

It’s one of [Ukraine’s] fundamental demands, is that if this were to end, they have to make sure this never happens again. They don’t want to get reinvaded.

Witkoff added, in contrast to Russia’s insistence on seizing all of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine as well as “annexing” Crimea and parts of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in the south:

The Russians made some concessions at the table with regard to all five of those regions. There is an important discussion with regard to Donetsk and what would happen there. And that discussion is going to specifically be detailed on Monday.

UPDATE 1401 GMT:

Speaking in Brussels, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has stressed the importance of Europe remaining united, to “stop the killings”, as it was at the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

He reiterated that a ceasefire must be agreed before talks on a “final deal” with Russia, a point to be presented to Donald Trump in Washington tomorrow.

Under its constitution, Ukraine cannot give up territory or even trade land, and Kyiv must be able to discuss the issue with Russia with the US as a mediator.

“Putin has many demands but we do not know all of them”, Zelensky notes. It will take time to consider these, but it is “impossible to do this under that pressure of weapons”.

He added that Russia’s “strategic direction” is “anti-European” so Moscow’s “potential” must be limited.

UPDATE 1352 GMT:

Alongside Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in Brussels, European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has assured that the European Union will support Ukraine for a “just” and “lasting” peace for as long as it takes.

Von der Leyen emphasized that Ukraine is a sovereign country and must be able to uphold its territorial integrity, with no limitations on its armed forces.

She noted how the EU has been striving to step up Europe’s defense capability and the Ukrainian base of industry and defense, particularly around drones. Ukraine must be a “steel porcupine” indigestible to ‘“potential invaders”.

The EU continues to support Ukraine’s path to membership in the bloc, providing a type of security guarantee.

She is the latest European leader to prompt Donald Trump into providing a security guarantee as well, hailing his willingness to offer this with the pledge that borders cannot be changed by force.

As long as Russia’s invasion and mass killing continues, the EU will apply economic sanctions and diplomatic pressure.

UPDATE 1347 GMT:

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomes Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in Brussels before their call with the Coalition of the Willing:

UPDATE 1343 GMT:

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is the latest European leader to confirm attendance at the meeting between Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump in the White House on Monday.

UPDATE 1016 GMT:

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will accompany Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington on Monday.

Von der Leyen posted:

A spokesperson for the German Government then confirmed:

The trip will serve as an exchange of information with US President Donald Trump following his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.

Chancellor Merz will discuss the status of peace efforts with the heads of state and government and underscore Germany’s interest in a swift peace agreement in Ukraine.

The talks will address, among other things, security guarantees, territorial issues, and continued support for Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression. This includes maintaining the pressure of sanctions.

The office of Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who has built a relationship with Trump through golfing, has confirmed that he is flying to Washington.

Reports are circulating that French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whom Trump has called a “wonderful person”, will also be at the White House meeting.

UPDATE 0702 GMT:

Five civilians have been murdered and four injured by Russian attacks on the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine over the past day.

Five people were wounded in the neighboring Kharkiv region and two in the Kherson region in the south.

Air defenses downed 40 of 60 drones. The Russians also fired an Iskander-M ballistic missile.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Emphasizing coordination with European partners, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Russia’s refusal of a ceasefire over its 42-month full-scale invasion “complicates the situation”.

Zelensky responded on social media to a joint statement of support for Ukraine from the Nordic Baltic Eight countries, following Friday’s meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin:

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.

Visibly giving way to Putin during the meeting in Alaska, Trump dropped the priority of a ceasefire, which had been agreed only 48 hours earlier in a call with Zelensky and European leaders. He did not return to his threat of sanctions on Russia and its trading partners, suspended when his welcome of Putin was arranged.

Instead, multiple officials say Trump’s “peace deal” includes Putin’s demand for all of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine, as well as Crimea, seized by Russia in 2014, and parts of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions in the south.

Trump is serving the Russians even though Moscow’s invasion has failed to take all of Donetsk and Luhansk despite relentless offensives and a costly, gradual advance.

Without referring to the terms of the “deal”, Trump said on Saturday that Ukraine should concede because “Russia is a very big power, and they’re not”. He said he was no longer proposing a ceasefire because “often times [they] do not hold up”.

Zelensky did not criticize Trump in his post, preferring to point to his visit to Washington on Monday:

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.

The White House has also invited European leaders to join the session. European officials say those being considered include Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who has developed a warm relationship wiht Trump, through golfing and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Stubb posted on Saturday:

“Ukraine Must Have Ironclad Security Guarantees”

The eight European leaders working alongside Zelensky said in a joint statement on Saturday:

Ukraine must have ironclad security guarantees to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. We welcome President Trump’s statement that the US is prepared to give security guarantees. The coalition of the willing is ready to play an active role. No limitations should be placed on Ukraine’s armed forces or on its cooperation with third countries. Russia cannot have a veto against Ukraine’s pathway to EU and NATO.

It will be up to Ukraine to make decisions on its territory. International borders must not be changed by force.

Our support to Ukraine will continue. We are determined to do more to keep Ukraine strong in order to achieve an end to the fighting and a just and lasting peace.

They added, “We will continue to strengthen sanctions and wider economic measures to put pressure on Russia’s war economy.”

The signatories were French President Emmanuel Macron; Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni; German Chancellor Friedrich Merz; UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer; Finnish President Alexander Stubb; Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk; European Council President António Costa; and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

On Sunday, the Europeans and Zelensky will discuss the issues in a video call.

The Nordic Baltic Eight joined the emphasis on US involvement in security guarantees. So did Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: “Robust and credible security guarantees are essential to any just and lasting peace. I welcome the openness of the United States to providing security guarantees as part of Coalition of the Willing’s efforts.”