Ukraine war: Zelensky in Germany for meeting with Trump, European leaders

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, on Wednesday, August 13, 2025, travelled to Berlin for a German-hosted virtual meeting with United States President Donald Trump and European leaders.

This comes two days before Trump meets Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, the United States.

European leaders are trying to drive home the perils of selling out Ukraine’s interests at the first U.S.-Russia summit since 2021.

Trump has said the Alaska talks will be a “feel-out” meeting as he pursues a ceasefire in Russia’s war on Ukraine, having said last week, to consternation in Kyiv and Europe, that any deal would involve “some swapping of territories”.

Zelensky will meet German Chancellor Friedrich Merz before a video conference with the leaders of Germany, Finland, France, Britain, Italy, Poland, and the European Union at 2 p.m. (1200 GMT), the hosts said. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte will also attend.

Trump and Vice President JD Vance will join the call at 3 p.m. (1300 GMT).

The unpredictability of the summit in Alaska has fuelled Europeans’ fears that the U.S. and Russia could take far-reaching decisions over their heads and even seek to coerce Ukraine into an unfavourable deal.

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“We are focusing now to ensure that it does not happen – engaging with U.S. partners and staying coordinated and united on the European side. Still a lot of time until Friday,” one senior official from Eastern Europe told Reuters.

European leaders, wary of angering Trump, have repeatedly said they welcome his efforts while stressing that there should be no deal about Ukraine – almost a fifth of which Russia has occupied – without Ukraine’s participation.

Trump’s administration tempered expectations on Tuesday for major progress toward a ceasefire, calling his meeting with Putin in Alaska a “listening exercise”.

Trump’s agreement last week to the summit with Putin was an abrupt shift after weeks of voicing frustration with Putin for resisting the U.S. peace initiative. Trump said his envoy had made “great progress” at talks in Moscow.

Half a dozen senior European officials said they see a risk of a deal being struck that is unfavourable for Europe and Ukraine’s security. They said European unity would be vital if that happened.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday the summit would be a “listening exercise” for Trump to hear what it would take to get to a deal.

After the meeting with Trump, the “coalition of the willing”, a group of countries working on plans to support Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire, will also convene online.

The Star