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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, in a statement to the media after the conclusion of the virtual summit with President Donald Trump, said that Europeans are doing everything they can to "help set the agenda" for the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Volodymyr Putin in Alaska.
"Trump will begin discussions with Putin in Alaska to end the war. Therefore, we Europeans are doing everything we can to lay the groundwork to ensure that this meeting goes on the right track. We want President Trump to succeed on Friday in Anchorage. European leaders, the US and NATO chief Mark Rutte talked about the parameters for Friday's meeting. In Alaska, the security interests of Europe and Ukraine must be protected," Merz said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also repeated his call for Ukraine to be at the negotiating table and said a ceasefire must come first in any agreement.
He also stressed that a legal recognition of Russian ownership of Ukraine "cannot happen," while reiterating that there must be strong security guarantees, with respect for Ukraine's sovereignty.
"We made it clear that Ukraine should be at the negotiating table at the next meeting. We want things to go in the right sequence: We want a ceasefire from the start and then a framework agreement should be drawn up. If Ukraine is prepared to talk about territorial negotiations, then we need to make sure that there are no violent changes on the border. We need strong security guarantees for Kiev and there should be Ukrainian forces there to defend the country's sovereignty, and they should also be able to rely on Western help for this," Merz said.
He further added that if there is no movement from Russia towards peace, then Europe and the US will have to exert more "pressure" on Putin. Merz said that Trump "recognizes this position and agrees with it." As for tonight's conversation, Merz says he had a "good conversation" with Trump about this issue.
"We wish President Trump all the best ," Merz said, adding that the leaders will speak to Trump after his meeting with Putin.
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