Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LAST UPDATE | 9 Aug
FRANCE’S PRESIDENT EMMANUEL Macron has called for the inclusion of Ukraine in talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The American and Russian presidents are to meet in Alaska on Friday to discuss Ukraine’s future. It is seen as a potential breakthrough after weeks of expressing frustration that more was not being done to quell the fighting.
Earlier today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed the planned summit between the two, warning that any peace deal excluding Kyiv would lead to “dead solutions”.
In a statement posted to Telegram, Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s territorial integrity, enshrined in the constitution, must be non-negotiable and emphasised that lasting peace must include Ukraine’s voice at the table.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine “will not give Russia any awards for what it has done” and that “Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier”.
Touching on Ukrainian anxieties that a direct meeting between Putin and Trump could marginalise Kyiv and European interests, Zelenskyy said: “Any solutions that are without Ukraine, are at the same time, solutions against peace.
“They will not bring anything. These are dead solutions, they will never work.”
Zelenskyy then said that he had spoken with Macron among a list of European leaders.
In a post to X, Macron confirmed that the two had spoken, and said, “We remain determined to support Ukraine, working in a spirit of unity and building on the work undertaken within the framework of the Coalition of the Willing.
“Ukraine’s future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians, who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now. Europeans will also necessarily be part of the solution, as their own security is at stake.
“I will continue to coordinate closely with President Zelensky and our European partners.”
Ukrainian officials previously said Kyiv would be amenable to a peace deal that would de facto recognise Ukraine’s inability to regain lost territories militarily.
Trump said he will meet with Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, suggesting that an eventual deal between Moscow and Kyiv to end the war in Ukraine could involve swapping territory.
The Kremlin later confirmed the summit, calling the location “quite logical.”
Zelenskyy said Ukraine was “ready for real decisions that can bring peace” but said it should be a “dignified peace”, without giving details.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, with millions forced to flee their homes.
Putin held consultations Friday with the leaders of China and India ahead of the summit with Trump, who has spent his first months in office trying to broker peace in Ukraine without making a breakthrough.
“The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska,” Trump said on his Truth Social site.
He said earlier at the White House that “there’ll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both” Ukraine and Russia, without providing further details.
Three rounds of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine have failed to bear fruit, and it remains unclear whether a summit would bring peace any closer.
Russian bombardments have forced millions of people to flee their homes and have destroyed swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine.
Putin has resisted multiple calls from the United States, Europe and Kyiv for a ceasefire.
He has also ruled out holding talks with Volodymyr Zelensky at this stage, a meeting the Ukrainian president says is necessary to make headway on a deal.
At talks in Istanbul last month, Russian negotiators outlined hardline territorial demands for halting its advance – calling for Kyiv to withdraw from some territory it controls and to renounce Western military support.
The Alaska summit would be the first between sitting US and Russian presidents since Joe Biden met Putin in Geneva in June 2021.
Trump and Putin last sat together in 2019 at a G20 summit meeting in Japan during Trump’s first term. They have spoken by telephone several times since January.
The Kremlin’s Ushakov said that Trump had been invited to visit Russia.
“Looking ahead, it is natural to hope that the next meeting between the presidents will be held on Russian territory. A corresponding invitation has already been sent to the US president,” Ushakov said.
Additional reporting by Emma Hickey
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say