Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – A number of European leaders flocked to Washington to provide political support to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of his meeting with US President Donald Trump, Monday (18/8/2025). This step was carried out amid Trump’s pressure so that Ukraine immediately received a peaceful agreement to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II.
Trump encouraged the achievement of a peaceful agreement after his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, where he seemed more in harmony with Moscow in encouraging peace negotiations without a ceasefire prerequisites. Trump and Zelensky are scheduled to meet Monday, while intensive discussions continue on the future of Ukraine.
US Foreign Minister Marco Rubio emphasized the urgency of peace. “If peace is not possible to be achieved and this war will only continue, thousands of people will continue to die. We might finally get to that point, but we don’t want it,” he said in an interview with CBS Face the Nation.
Trump on Sunday wrote on social media that there will be “great progress related to Russia,” even without a detailed explanation.
The source who knew Moscow’s talks said, the US and Russia had discussed the possibility of Russia to release a small portion of the area he had occupied in return for Ukraine to hand over most of the eastern regions that had been strengthened, including in Donbas, as well as the front -line freezing in other locations.
A number of Trump officials implied that the future of Donbas, which included Donetsk and Luhanansk and most of them were controlled by Russia, became the main issue. In addition, Washington also alluded to the possibility of a new defense pact for Ukraine.
Trump messenger, Steve Witkoff, said to CNN That Moscow was willing to accept the US offer for the first time to provide protection similar to Article 5 of NATO. “We managed to get this concession, that the United States can offer protection such as Article 5,” he said.
Article 5 The NATO Charter determines the principle of collective defense, namely an attack on one member is considered an attack on all members.
However, such a commitment could be not enough to convince Kyiv, who had been betrayed before even though the border was guaranteed in the 1994 Budapest Memorandum after handing over the Soviet era nuclear weapons.
The fact that Russia still annexed Crimea in 2014 and launched a full invasion in 2022 to be a bitter reminder for Ukraine. War has now lasted three and a half years and killed or injured more than 1 million people.
European support
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday held a meeting of allies to strengthen Zelensky’s position. They try to ensure a strong security guarantee for Ukraine, including the direct involvement of the United States.
European leaders want to avoid repetition of Zelensky’s last oval room meeting in February which ended badly, where Trump and Vice President JD Vance reprimanded Zelensky in public because they were considered not to know thanking.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Finnish President Alexander Stubb-who has a personal closeness with Trump-and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will also go to Washington.
In a joint statement, the British, France and Germany stressed that they were ready to mobilize “Security Insurance Troops after the battle stopped, helped secure the air and sea of Ukraine, and regenerate the armed forces.”
However, a number of European countries are still hesitant to be directly involved in the military, showing how complicated this peace discussion is even among the Kyiv allies themselves.
A number of European leaders stressed the importance of a ceasefire before peace negotiations. “You cannot negotiate for peace under bombs that continue to fall,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Poland.
Trump initially said he tried to secure a ceasefire when he met Putin, but then agreed with Moscow that peaceful negotiations could begin without stopping attacks. The idea was rejected by most Ukraine allies in Europe.
Zelensky in his upload on platform X emphasized that meetings with European leaders showed “Clear support for Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty.” He added, “All agreed that the border should not be changed by violence.”
Zelensky also emphasized that any security guarantee must be real. “It must provide protection on land, air and sea, and developed with European participation,” he said.
(luc/luc)
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