Europe pushes for Ukraine role in Trump-Putin talks

Brussels: European leaders pushed on Sunday for Ukraine to be a part of the negotiations between the United States and Russia, ahead of talks between...

Brussels: European leaders pushed on Sunday for Ukraine to be a part of the negotiations between the United States and Russia, ahead of talks between presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.

The two leaders will meet in the US state of Alaska on Friday to try to resolve the three-year war, but Europe has insisted that Kyiv and European powers should be part of any deal to end the conflict.

EU foreign ministers will discuss the next steps before the talks in a meeting by video link on Monday, joined by their Ukrainian counterpart.

The idea of a US-Russia meeting without Zelensky has raised concerns that a deal would require Kyiv to cede swathes of territory, which the EU has rejected.

"The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine," leaders from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Britain and Finland and EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said in a joint statement, urging Trump to put more pressure on Russia.