L to R: French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Donald Trump, and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky at the funeral of Pope Francis, The Vatican, April 26, 2025 (ANSA)

EA-Times Radio VideoCast: Countering the Spectacle and Threat of the Putin-Trump Meeting

EA on RTE and BBC: Why Ukraine Will Survive Trump-Putin Meeting

Sunday’s Coverage: Kyiv and Europe Maneuver Ahead of Trump-Putin Meeting

UPDATE 1646 GMT:

Donald Trump has confirmed that he will speak with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and European heads of government on Wednesday.

He praised the “great people, great leaders” and said he had “extremely good” relationships with them.

UPDATE 1639 GMT:

The European Union will allocate third tranche of more than €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion), drawn from profits on frozen Russian Central Bank assets, for repayment of Ukraine’s loans.

Through the Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration mechanism, Ukraine is expected to get $50 billion in loans.

Previous tranches were disbursed in July 2024 and April 2025.

UPDATE 1504 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders will speak by phone with Donald Trump on Wednesday.

The leaders of the six countries — Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and the UK — who signed a joint statement will be joined by European Council President Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission President António Costa, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in a conference with Zelensky.

The group will then call Trump and US Vice President J.D. Vance.

The office of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the talks will focus on “further options for exerting pressure on Russia” and “the preparation of possible peace negotiations”, including “related issues of territorial claims and security”.

UPDATE 1140 GMT:

Citing Russia’s latest attacks on the ground and from the air, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged partners to maintain a tough line against Moscow’s invasion and mass killing.

Russia is dragging out the war, and therefore it deserves stronger global pressure. Russia refuses to stop the killings, and therefore must not receive any rewards or benefits. And this is not just a moral position – it is a rational one. Concessions do not persuade a killer. But truly strong protection of life stops the killers.

UPDATE 0929 GMT:

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has emphasized that Europe’s leaders “remain united in their approach” behind Ukraine.

For Poland and our European partners, it must be clear that you cannot change borders with force. The West, including European countries, will not accept Russian demands which simply amount to the seizure of Ukrainian territory.

He warned against Russia believing it can challenge other countries’ borders “with impunity”:

From history we know — and Poland has often been a victim of this — that when the great powers decided about other countries without the participation of those countries in negotiations, the consequences were grave.

The Prime Minister said he had “lots of fears and lots of hope” about the Trump-Putin meeting, given Trump’s “tactic…of unpredictability at times, when it comes to various moves and actions”.

UPDATE 0755 GMT:

Ukrainian drones have hit another facility inside Russia supporting Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

The Arzamas Instrument-Making Plant — sanctioned by Ukraine, the European Union, New Zealand, and the US — manufactures gyroscopic instruments, control systems, onboard computers, steering mechanisms, and testing equipment for Russian warplanes and spacecraft.

An official in Ukraine’s State security service said at least four drones struck the complex.

Nizhky Novgorod Governor Gleb Nikitin said the strike targeted “two industrial zones”. He claimed one worker was killed and two injured.

UPDATE 0653 GMT:

At least seven civilians have been killed and at least 47 injured by Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day.

Air defenses downed 59 of 71 drones overnight. The other 12 drones hit six different locations.

In the Kherson region in southern Ukraine, four civilians were murdered and seven injured. Two apartment buildings and 30 houses were damaged.

In the Donetsk region in the east, two were slain and 11 wounded. In the Kharkiv region in the northeast, one person was killed and five injured, including a juvenile.

In Zaporizhzhia city in southern Ukraine, at least 20 people were injured by Russia’s guided aerial bombs a bus station and a university medical clinic.

Casualties were also reported in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Europe’s leaders are seeking a conversation with Donald Trump before the reality TV star meets Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, discussing Russia’s 41 1/2-month invasion of Ukraine.

“People familiar with the matter” say the call would follow up on Saturday’s discussion near London, where Ukrainian and European officials were briefed on talks between UK Foreign Minister David Lammy and US Vice President J.D. Vance.

Countering Putin’s demand for Russian seizure of more than 20% of Ukraine, Ukraine and the Europeans proposed a ceasefire before further terms are discussed. Territory will only be exchanged on a reciprocal basis.

The European officials emphasized that European Union representatives should be involved in any negotiation with Russia, reiterating that Ukraine’s future cannot be discussed without Kyiv’s participation.

EU Foreign Ministers will convene a virtual meeting on Monday.

Rutte: “Ukraine Will Have to Be Involved”

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte told the US outlet CBS News on Sunday that any agreement over territory will “have to be on the table” in terms of territory, alongside security guarantees for Ukraine. He said this may include Kyiv’s acknowledgement of the loss of control over some areas without formally renouncing sovereignty.

“When it comes to peace talks, the ceasefire, and what happens after that on territories, on security guarantees for Ukraine, Ukraine will have to be and will be involved. But on Friday, it is important to see how serious Putin is,” Rutte summarized.

He emphasized:

[The Putin-Trump meeting] will not be the final say on this. There will not be a final deal on this. Of course, Ukraine will have to be involved.

What will happen on Friday is testing Putin by President Trump. And I commend him for the fact that he organized this meeting.

Will Zelensky Get An Invitation?

In an interview with Fox TV on Sunday, Vance said the US wants to schedule a three-way meeting with Trump, Putin, and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.

One of the most important logjams is that Vladimir Putin said that he would never sit down with Zelensky, the head of Ukraine, and the President has now got that to change.

We’re at a point now where we’re trying to figure out, frankly, scheduling and things like that, around when these three leaders could sit down and discuss an end to this conflict.

Trump’s envoy to NATO, Matthew Wheeler was more hesitant on CNN:

Yes, I certainly think it’s possible. Certainly, there can’t be a deal that everybody that’s involved in it doesn’t agree to. And, I mean, obviously, it’s a high priority to get this war to end.

He added, “If he thinks that that is the best scenario to invite Zelensky, then he will do that….Mo decision has been made to this point.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he hoped and assumed that Zelensky would also be involved in the meeting.

Merz continued, “We cannot accept in any case that territorial questions are discussed or even decided between Russia and America over the heads of Europeans and Ukrainians. I assume that the American Government sees it the same way.”

Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz added:

I believe President Zelensky will be invited; there’s some information emerging today that there’s a chance President Zelensky will be present at President Trump’s meeting with Putin. That would be the best solution, and I believe it will happen.