London: In a rapidly intensifying geopolitical drama, the leaders of France, Germany, and Britain will convene Sunday to bolster Ukraine’s position as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy prepares to enter what could be the most consequential meeting of his presidency a showdown in Washington with Donald Trump.
As the specter of a lopsided peace deal looms large, President Trump is reportedly pressing Kyiv to accept a proposal shaped behind closed doors with Russian President Vladimir Putin in an unlikely summit in Alaska. Sources familiar with the encounter say Putin dangled a patchwork concession, returning slivers of occupied territory in exchange for Ukraine surrendering vast chunks of land including the entirety of the embattled Donetsk region.
The offer, which Zelenskiy has firmly rejected, would enshrine Russian control over large swathes of Ukraine already fractured by three years of full-scale war and redraw Europe's borders with a pen soaked in blood. With over a million casualties and no end in sight, the proposed deal has sharpened divisions across the Atlantic and set the stage for potentially volatile diplomacy in Washington.
To counterbalance U.S. pressure, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer are set to hold a virtual summit at 1300 GMT, an emergency gathering of the “coalition of the willing,” Kyiv’s closest European allies. Their goal is to ensure Ukraine isn’t strong-armed into an unfavorable peace and remains a central voice in any negotiations.
European capitals are now scrambling to forge a united front. They are calling for a trilateral summit including Trump, Putin, and Zelenskiy a risky but strategic gambit to prevent a backroom deal that excludes Kyiv from its own fate.
One European official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the leaders would present a clear framework for Ukraine’s security guarantees, outlining their own contributions, those from willing partners, and critically what they expect from the United States.
“They will spell out what they consider essential in terms of security guarantees: what they can do themselves, what falls to the coalition of volunteers, and also what they expect from the United States,” the official said. “Indeed, they expect a very robust commitment.”
Zelenskiy could be accompanied to Washington by one or more of the European leaders, symbolically reinforcing unity and collective pressure ahead of his Oval Office meeting.
Trump, whose Alaska meeting with Putin stunned much of the diplomatic world, told reporters Saturday that “Ukraine needs to be realistic” and pursue a deal because “Russia is a very big power, and they’re not.” According to sources close to the talks, Putin proposed freezing current front lines if Ukraine relinquishes Donetsk entirely a non-starter for Zelenskiy, given that three-quarters of the region is already under Moscow’s grip.
Even more controversially, Trump reportedly agreed with Putin that a ceasefire should not precede negotiations, a stark reversal from his previous insistence that all parties “lay down their weapons” before sitting down.
Zelenskiy, responding on social media platform X, wrote: “Stopping the killing is a key element of stopping the war. Peace cannot begin while bullets still fly.”
As diplomats talk, the war grinds on. Ukraine’s air force reported 60 Russian drone attacks and a ballistic missile barrage overnight, intercepting or jamming 40 drones. On the front lines, Russian forces continue their slow but relentless push deeper into Ukrainian territory.
This relentless military pressure adds urgency to the diplomatic whirlwind. Zelenskiy’s last meeting with Trump in February ended in a public scolding from both Trump and Vice President JD Vance, a humiliation Kyiv will not want to repeat.
German Chancellor Merz, speaking ahead of Sunday’s summit, expressed optimism this visit would be less bruising. “We’ll give a few good pieces of advice,” he said. “The U.S. remains the decisive player militarily, economically, diplomatically.”
Despite Western appeals, Putin remains unmoved. Following the Alaska summit, he reiterated Russia’s long-standing red lines: NATO must bar Ukraine permanently, and the territorial gains made since 2022 must be recognized, at least tacitly.
Former British national security adviser Mark Lyall Grant called Trump’s pivot on the ceasefire a clear win for Putin. Still, he acknowledged a silver lining: the United States appears ready to engage in post-war security frameworks for Ukraine, a vital step toward preventing another Russian offensive in years to come.
“Land swaps are messy, but security guarantees real, enforceable ones are the linchpin of any sustainable peace,” Lyall Grant said. “Otherwise, Putin will do what he always does: pause, reload, and return.”
As Zelenskiy prepares for what may be the defining diplomatic battle of the war, Europe is circling its wagons. Whether that will be enough to counter the political might of a Trump-Putin axis remains to be seen.