European and Ukrainian leaders met near London on Saturday with senior U.S. officials, urging that Ukraine be included in any settlement talks between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The meeting came amid concern that the two leaders could reach an agreement on ending the war in Ukraine without Kyiv's participation, reported The New York Times.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that the meeting was co-hosted by U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Vice President JD Vance, with senior representatives from Ukraine and multiple European nations attending. Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, who met with Putin in Moscow last week, was expected to join the meeting virtually.
Trump said Friday that he will meet with Putin in Alaska on Aug. 15, making the announcement on social media after he said that the parties, including Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, were close to a ceasefire deal.
Trump told reporters earlier on Friday that an agreement would involve some exchange of land.
According to European officials, Putin's proposal would give Russia control over the entire Donbas region, including Luhansk and Donetsk provinces — even areas now under Ukrainian control.
In exchange, the officials said that Russia would agree to the terms of a ceasefire that would freeze the battle lines in other contested regions such as Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, meanwhile, has rejected giving up any territory not currently occupied by Russia.
Kyiv's terms call for a ceasefire followed by negotiations, while maintaining the Ukrainian sovereignty and territory under international laws.
In Europe, leaders are concerned that Trump and Putin could negotiate a deal without involving Ukraine and then force Kyiv to accept their plans.
Two European officials, speaking anonymously, said they stressed to their U.S. counterparts that Ukraine must be part of any talks and said that it is no longer to acceptable to divide Europe between major powers, as happened after World War II.
Last Wednesday, Trump briefed European leaders on Putin's proposal after Witkoff visited Moscow.
The officials said Trump mentioned potential land swaps, including full Russian control of the Donbas region, but gave few details. European and Ukrainian representatives have been seeking clarity on whether southern territories, including the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, would be part of any agreement.
Russia, meanwhile, said that any deal must recognize that it maintiains control over Crimea, which it annexed in 2014, along with Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. But European leaders are warning that large concessions could encourage further aggression, especially in the Baltic states.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has been in regular contact with European counterparts, including a phone call on Friday, has said any peace settlement would involve concessions, suggesting Ukraine may have to give up some territory.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.