European leaders have insisted that the “path to peace” in Ukraine cannot be decided without Kyiv’s involvement, as Donald Trump prepares to meet Vladimir Putin in Alaska next Friday amid growing concerns about a potential land-for-peace deal.
The White House confirmed it is “considering” inviting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the 15 August summit, though US officials told NBC News that no invitation has been finalised and his attendance remains uncertain. A senior administration official said a trilateral meeting was “absolutely” possible, adding: “Everyone is very hopeful that would happen.”
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy hosted crucial talks at his Chevening estate in Kent on Saturday, bringing together US Vice President JD Vance, Ukrainian officials and European national security advisers. The meeting, requested by Washington, saw the allies present a unified position that any ceasefire must precede territorial negotiations.
In a joint statement following the meeting, leaders from Britain, France, Germany, Poland, Finland and the EU Commission warned that the “only approach” to ending the war “combines active diplomacy, support to Ukraine, and pressure on the Russian Federation.
The European intervention comes amid mounting fears that Trump might accept Putin’s proposals without adequately considering Ukraine’s position or that of its NATO allies. On Friday, Trump told reporters that a peace deal would involve “some swapping of territories to the betterment of both sides”, prompting immediate rejection from Kyiv.
Zelenskyy responded forcefully on Saturday, warning that allowing Russia to keep occupied territory would inevitably lead to further invasions. “Now, Putin wants to be forgiven for seizing the south of our Kherson region, Zaporizhzhia, the entire territory of Luhansk and Donetsk regions, and Crimea. We will not allow this second attempt to partition Ukraine,” he said.
Knowing Russia – where there is a second, there will be a third,” the Ukrainian president added, referencing how Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea failed to prevent the current full-scale invasion.
During Saturday’s Chevening meeting, Ukrainian representatives including Defence Minister Rustem Umerov and presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak made clear that an immediate ceasefire should be the first step, with Ukraine refusing to give up any territory in exchange. European officials suggested that any territorial adjustments would need to be reciprocal, with Russia withdrawing from occupied areas of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson if Ukraine were to consider any concessions in Donbas.
US officials described the UK talks as producing “significant progress” towards Trump’s goal of ending the war. However, the Institute for the Study of War warned that “Putin remains uninterested in ending his war and is attempting to extract bilateral concessions from the United States without meaningfully engaging in a peace process.
The Alaska summit location carries symbolic weight, as the territory was sold by Russia to the United States 158 years ago for $7.2 million. The choice avoids complications from the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Putin, as the US is not a party to the court.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spoke with both Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of the Chevening meeting. A Downing Street spokeswoman said the leaders “discussed the latest developments in Ukraine, reiterating their unwavering support for President Zelenskyy and to securing a just and lasting peace for the Ukrainian people.
Macron emphasised on social media that “the future of Ukraine cannot be decided without the Ukrainians who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now. Europeans will also necessarily be part of the solution, as it concerns their security.”
The diplomatic flurry follows a meeting between Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Putin in Moscow on Wednesday, where the Russian president reportedly presented a proposal requiring Ukraine to cede the eastern Donbas region and Crimea in exchange for halting hostilities. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this marked “the first time” Russia had provided “concrete examples” of its demands.
However, critics note that Russia already controls most of these territories and would essentially be gaining international recognition of its conquests without having to fight for remaining Ukrainian-held areas. Ukraine currently holds only about four square miles of Russian territory in Kursk region, whilst Russia occupies approximately one-fifth of Ukraine’s sovereign territory.
Meanwhile, violence continued on the ground overnight, with five people killed in Russian attacks on Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk, and one death reported in a Ukrainian drone strike on an oil refinery in Russia’s Saratov region.
A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “The president remains open to a trilateral summit with both leaders. Right now, the White House is focusing on planning the bilateral meeting requested by President Putin.
The Trump-Putin meeting marks their first encounter since 2019 and comes as Trump faces pressure to deliver on campaign promises to swiftly end the conflict. The US president had set Friday as a deadline for Putin to agree to peace terms or face severe sanctions, though this deadline passed with little fanfare as summit preparations accelerated.
European officials remain wary of any deal that might resemble the failed 1938 Munich Agreement, warning that concessions to Moscow without security guarantees would merely encourage future Russian aggression against Ukraine and potentially other European nations.
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