European leaders and Ukraine are urging the United States to adopt a more resolute stance ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war, expressing concern that the talks could ultimately favor Moscow. On Friday, Trump announced that he would meet Putin in Alaska on August 15, stating that all parties, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, were nearing a resolution for the three-and-a-half-year conflict. While details of the potential deal remain undisclosed, Trump hinted that it would involve “some swapping of territories,” a prospect that Kyiv and its European allies believe would only encourage further Russian aggression.
In response, European officials presented a counterproposal to the U.S. during a meeting at Chevening House on Saturday. This counterproposal reportedly demands that a ceasefire be established before any other steps are taken, and that any territorial exchange must be reciprocal and include strong security guarantees. One European negotiator was quoted as saying, “You can’t start a process by ceding territory in the middle of fighting.” While a U.S. official claimed the meetings at Chevening “produced significant progress” toward Trump’s goal of ending the war, the White House has not confirmed receiving the European counterproposals.
Zelenskiy has been vocal in his opposition to any territorial concessions, stating in a video address that Ukraine “will not gift their land to the occupier” and warning that any decisions made without his country would be “stillborn” and unworkable. He has been in frequent contact with European allies, including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, urging them to take “clear steps” towards a lasting peace. Macron, in a post on X, reaffirmed that “Ukraine’s future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians,” emphasizing that Europe’s own security is at stake.
