European leaders will join Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky when he meets Donald Trump for peace talks at the White House on Monday – although there’s not yet word as to whether Sir Keir Starmer will be one of them. Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, German chancellor Friedrich Merz, Finnish president Alexander Stubb and French president Emmanuel Macron were the first leaders to confirm they will join Mr Zelensky in Washington DC.
Mr Zelensky’s Oval Office rendezvous with the US president will take place after Western allies meet for a coalition of the willing video call on Sunday afternoon. The call will be hosted by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Mr Merz. Downing Street would not comment on whether Sir Keir plans to travel to Washington to join other European leaders on Monday.
The show of unity by European leaders comes as Mr Trump appears poised to urge the Ukrainian leader to agree to a Russian land grab of his country’s territory, according to reports.
Several news outlets have reported Russian president Vladimir Putin has demanded full control of Donetsk and Luhansk – two occupied Ukrainian regions – as a condition for ending the war.
In exchange, he would give up other Ukrainian territories held by Russian troops, several news outlets said, attributing sources familiar with Mr Putin and Mr Trump’s negotiations in Alaska on Friday.
Mr Trump is said to be inclined to support the plan, and will speak to Mr Zelensky about it when they meet in the Oval Office
The European leaders may also fear a repeat of Mr Zelensky’s last visit to the White House at the end of February.
The tumultuous spat resulted in a souring of relations between the US and Ukraine.
