“We are Russia’s next target, and we are already in harm’s way,” Rutte said last week. “Russia has brought war back to Europe and we must be prepared for the scale of war our grandparents and great grandparents endured.”
No surprise then that European officials are viewing the coming days as critical. Leaders of the U.K., Germany, and possibly France, alongside Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and his special envoy Steve Witkoff, are set to meet with Zelenskyy in Berlin in a final diplomatic push.
Highlighting the importance of the meeting, “numerous European heads of state and government, as well as EU and NATO leaders, will join the talks” after the initial meeting, stated Stefan Kornelius, spokesperson for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. French President Emmanuel Macron hasn’t confirmed his attendance but spoke with Zelenskyy by telephone on Sunday.
The meeting will be Europe’s effort to shape the final settlement, following backlash over a 28-point peace plan drafted by Witkoff — reportedly with Kremlin help. European capitals and Kyiv have since been working on an alternative.
Further European disunity this week would send a “disastrous signal to Ukraine,” an EU official warned. Such an outcome would not only hurt Ukraine but would also mean “Europe will then fail as well.”
Emptying territories
This time the focus will be on a 20-point amendment to the plan drafted by Kyiv and its European allies and submitted to Washington for review last week.
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