Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy secured firm backing from NATO and European leaders on Sunday as fears mounted that President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin could seek a deal to end the war that sidelines Kyiv.
Trump, who had been threatening fresh sanctions against Moscow, announced on Friday that he will meet Putin on August 15 in Alaska. While the White House has said Trump is open to including Zelenskiy, current plans focus on a bilateral meeting. The Kremlin has already dismissed the idea of a direct encounter with the Ukrainian leader, saying conditions are “unfortunately still far” from being met.
The stakes grew higher after Russian strikes in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region injured at least 12 people, according to the country’s foreign ministry. “That is why sanctions are needed, pressure is needed,” Zelenskiy said in response.
Trump has suggested a potential agreement could involve “some swapping of territories to the betterment of both (sides),” stoking Ukrainian fears of being pressured into ceding land. Zelenskiy insists that any settlement without Ukraine’s involvement will be “stillborn” and unworkable.
On Saturday, leaders from Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland, and the European Commission issued a joint statement emphasizing that any diplomatic resolution must safeguard the security interests of Ukraine and Europe. “Any deal between the U.S. and Russia must have Ukraine and the EU included,” said EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte added that the Alaska summit will be a test of Putin’s willingness to end the war while affirming Ukraine’s right to decide its own geopolitical future.
Russia currently controls nearly a fifth of Ukraine, including Crimea and large parts of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. Moscow also holds smaller portions of other regions, while Kyiv controls a sliver of Russia’s Kursk region.
Western military analysts say Russia captured about 500 square kilometers in July alone, though at heavy cost. Some pro-Kremlin voices have floated territory swaps, but without evidence.
European officials have reportedly drafted a counter-proposal to Trump’s plan, though details remain undisclosed. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev accused Europe of trying to block U.S. efforts, while Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova issued a scathing attack on EU-Ukraine relations.
Analysts warn the Putin-Trump meeting could leave both Kyiv and Europe confronting hard choices. “What we will see emerge from Alaska will almost certainly be a catastrophe for Ukraine and Europe,” wrote Phillips P. O’Brien, professor of strategic studies at the University of St Andrews.
Zelenskiy stressed the need for a united stance with Europe, calling it Kyiv’s “main resource” in resisting exclusion from talks. U.S. Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, said any negotiated settlement would likely leave both Moscow and Kyiv dissatisfied.
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