European leaders are ready to assume the leading role in negotiations to end Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a spokesperson for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Monday, signalling a dramatic shift in the diplomatic effort as Ukraine’s president declared that Russia is losing the war.
“What is new, I believe, is that this process is now gaining new momentum in Europe,” Stefan Kornelius, Merz’s spokesperson, said after a meeting in London late Sunday between the leaders of Ukraine, France, Germany and the UK. “Another new development is that we are taking up and continuing the negotiation process that the U.S. has largely led. We are doing this in close coordination with the U.S.”
“Zelenskyy says Russia is losing as Europe prepares to lead peace talks with Putin”
The announcement comes after months of US-led talks that have produced few tangible results. US President Donald Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, have led efforts to broker negotiations between Russia and Ukraine since early 2025, but Washington is now increasingly focused on ending the US-Israeli war with Iran.
In an interview with the Guardian after the London talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Vladimir Putin’s days are numbered. “Russia is not winning,” he declared, adding that Ukraine’s military position is the strongest it has been for more than two years. As Putin’s influence wanes and his war machine crumbles, Zelenskyy said it is important for Europe and the world to stick together.
The four leaders issued a joint statement calling for “direct dialogue between Ukraine and Russia with active U.S. and European participation” and set out five conditions to achieve peace, including an immediate and complete ceasefire. The current contact line between Russian and Ukrainian forces must be the starting point for negotiations, the statement read, and Ukraine must have “robust and legally binding” security guarantees in place. Russian assets must remain frozen until the Kremlin “ceases its war of aggression and compensates Ukraine for the damage caused by the war.”
European leaders will further discuss their approach to potential peace talks at a G7 meeting in Evian and during a European Council summit in Brussels next week, Kornelius said. “We need the broadest possible support from all European partners in order to actually push toward peace.”
It remains unclear, however, whether Putin is willing to sit down with European leaders, who have long sought a greater role in shaping a resolution but were excluded from direct negotiations. European countries, and particularly Germany, have become Kyiv’s biggest military supporters and would likely take a tougher line in talks with Moscow than their US counterparts.