Ukraine and its European partners have agreed on five joint principles regarding peace negotiations and conveyed them to U.S. President Donald Trump. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced this while speaking to the media alongside Federal Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz.
The Head of State began his working visit to Germany with a meeting with the Federal Chancellor, during which they discussed bilateral relations.
“We are very grateful to Germany for such a substantial contribution to assistance, to strengthening our state and our security, for bolstering our air defense, and for the support from the very beginning of this war. We deeply appreciate it,” the President said.
After that, a coordination call was held, in which, together with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Friedrich Merz, the following leaders participated online: President of France Emmanuel Macron, President of Finland Alexander Stubb, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Keir Starmer, President of the Council of Ministers of Italy Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk, President of the European Council António Costa, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
The leaders agreed on five joint principles.
According to the Head of State, these include the format of negotiations: everything concerning Ukraine must be discussed with Ukraine. Preparations should be made for a trilateral format of talks.
“There must be a ceasefire – number one. There must be security guarantees – truly reliable ones. And today, by the way, President Trump voiced his support for this and the United States’ readiness to take part. Among the agreed principles is also that Russia cannot have veto power over Ukraine’s European and NATO prospects. And peace talks should be combined with proper pressure on Russia,” the President added.
The situation on the battlefield was also discussed. Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that the Russian leader is bluffing and trying to exert pressure ahead of the meeting in Alaska. He is also bluffing when he tries to show that sanctions do not matter to him and that they are ineffective. The Head of State emphasized that, on the contrary, sanctions are extremely helpful and hit the Russian war economy hard.
After the press conference, the leaders took part in a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, which focused on the future security architecture.
