EU calls on Trump to defend European interests at upcoming Alaska summit with Putin
European Union leaders appealed on Tuesday to U.S. President Donald Trump to defend their security interests at a key summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin later this week over the war in Ukraine, according to the Associated Press.
In a statement early on Tuesday, the leaders said that they welcome the efforts of President Trump towards ending the war. But, they underlined, “the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.”
“A just and lasting peace that brings stability and security must respect international law, including the principles of independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and that international borders must not be changed by force,” they said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected the idea that Ukraine must commit to give up land to secure a ceasefire.
On Monday, however, Trump repeated that “there’ll be some land swapping going on.” He said that this would involve “some bad stuff for both” Ukraine and Russia.
The Europeans will make a fresh attempt to rally Trump to Ukraine’s cause on Wednesday at virtual meetings convened by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Trump did not confirm whether he would take part, but he did say: “I’m going to get everybody’s ideas” before meeting with Putin.
