LONDON: The leaders of Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and Italy held a joint call with US President Donald Trump ahead of his scheduled telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni spoke with Trump to coordinate positions ahead of Monday’s high-stakes call with the Kremlin, according to statements released by the German and British governments.
Following the call, a spokesperson for the British government said the leaders discussed the urgency of securing a ceasefire in Ukraine and the possibility of additional sanctions on Russia should Moscow fail to engage seriously in peace negotiations.
French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated on social media platform X that “Putin must show he wants peace by accepting the 30-day unconditional ceasefire proposed by President Trump and backed by Ukraine and Europe.”
Trump, who has expressed a strong desire to be seen as a peacemaker, is expected to speak to Putin at 10:00 am Eastern Time (1400 GMT) on Monday.
He said the conversation would focus on halting the war in Ukraine.
“The subjects of the call will be stopping the bloodbath… and trade,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account on Sunday.
He added, “Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war, a war that should have never happened, will end.”
The Kremlin confirmed that preparations for the call were underway. Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters the discussion would factor in the outcomes of recent talks held in Istanbul between Russian and Ukrainian delegations—the first such meeting since March 2022.
During those talks, Russia tabled several demands, including Ukraine adopting a neutral status, banning foreign troops and weapons of mass destruction on its territory, dropping any claims for war reparations, and recognising Crimea and four additional regions—Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson—as part of the Russian Federation.
Peskov added that a face-to-face meeting between Putin and Trump could occur if both sides deemed it appropriate, stating that the timing and format would be determined by the leaders themselves.
Trump is also expected to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO allies in the coming days, amid speculation that a ceasefire deal could alter the course of the war and its wider geopolitical implications.
European leaders, while cautiously supportive of Trump’s initiative, have expressed concern that a deal might be imposed that leaves Ukraine vulnerable and effectively surrenders a fifth of its territory. “There is deep worry that Trump and Putin could force a punitive peace on Ukraine without firm security guarantees,” a senior European diplomat was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Putin has previously stated that Ukraine must formally abandon its NATO ambitions and fully withdraw from territories Russia claims as its own, reiterating Moscow’s conditions for any potential pause in hostilities.
