{"id":160536,"date":"2025-08-13T15:00:54","date_gmt":"2025-08-13T15:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/ukraine-war-latest-zelenskyy-tells-trump-and-europes-leaders-putin-is-bluffing-before-us-russia-talks-in-alaska-sky-news\/"},"modified":"2025-08-13T15:00:54","modified_gmt":"2025-08-13T15:00:54","slug":"ukraine-war-latest-zelenskyy-tells-trump-and-europes-leaders-putin-is-bluffing-before-us-russia-talks-in-alaska-sky-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/ukraine-war-latest-zelenskyy-tells-trump-and-europes-leaders-putin-is-bluffing-before-us-russia-talks-in-alaska-sky-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine war latest: Zelenskyy tells Trump and Europe's leaders Putin is 'bluffing' before US-Russia talks in Alaska – Sky News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders have been speaking to Donald Trump at a virtual meeting today ahead of Trump’s summit with Vladimir Putin on Friday. Zelenskyy and German leader Friedrich Merz have just given a news conference about the call. Watch and follow live below.
Wednesday 13 August 2025 15:58, UK
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A “coalition of the willing” meeting is now taking place, Sky News understands.
The term refers to those nations who are prepared to help police any future peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv.
The meeting is chaired by Keir Starmer, who has led efforts in this area with French President Emmanuel Macron.
German Chancellor Merz says Europe knows that Ukraine “needs security guarantees” and “that we will have to support the Ukrainian army to defend their country”. 
Details of these guarantees weren’t discussed today with Donald Trump but that will have to follow “once the way towards peace has been opened”, he says.
While taking questions, Volodymyr Zelenskyy added: “It seems to me that the success of any talks depends first of all on the results and the mood and our mood now is that we are united and it was very positive.” 
He added that all the partners expressed “the same vision and this is an important step forward”.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy is asked whether his position on surrendering the eastern Donbas region had changed following today’s negotiations. 
Vladimir Putin reportedly wants control of the region in exchange for any ceasefire.
Zelenskyy said his “position hasn’t changed because it’s based on the Ukrainian constitution and the Ukrainian constitution hasn’t changed”.
He adds: “Any questions concerning our country’s territorial integrity cannot be discussed without regard for our people, for the will of our people and the Ukrainian constitution”.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy opens his comments by thanking the German chancellor for hosting him for the meeting today, and for Germany’s wider contribution to Ukrainian security.
He says all the leaders who met today wanted “peace in Ukraine, peace in Europe”.
They agreed on a set of principles ahead of Donald Trump’s talks with Vladimir Putin on Friday, he explains, and emphasises: “What concerns Ukraine must be discussed with Ukraine.”
He goes on to say that Trump supports a ceasefire and security guarantees for Ukraine, and adds: “Russia should not have the right to veto Ukraine’s NATO prospects.”
“There should joint pressure on Russia, there should be sanctions, and there should be a message that if Russia doesn’t agree to a ceasefire in Alaska, this principle should work,” he says.
Zelenskyy goes on to say that he told Trump and European leaders that “Putin is bluffing – he is trying to push forward along the whole front”.
“Putin is also bluffing saying he doesn’t care about the sanctions and that they’re not working,” he says.
“In reality, the sanctions are very effective, and they’re hurting the Russian military economy.”
Zelenskyy goes on to say that he also said in the meeting that “Putin doesn’t want peace – he wants to occupy our country”.
He calls for US and European sanctions, saying they are a crucial was to “stop Putin’s war”.
On the Trump-Putin meeting, he adds: “We hope that the central theme will be a ceasefire. The United States president said this several times.
“He proposed to me that after the meeting in Alaska, we’ll have contact and discuss all the results, if they are achieved, and we’ll define future steps.”
Opening the news conference, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says he is “very happy” that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could join him so they could do the video call with European leaders and Donald Trump.
He says it is fitting that the call took place today, on 13 August, because the Berlin Wall construction began on that date in 1961.
“So now, 64 years later, we know it was a symbol of the European, of the German split, partition – and we were able to overcome this separation,” Merz says.
But Russia’s war in Ukraine has “opened the wounds of European separation again”.
He goes on to say that Trump will be meeting with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, where “important decisions might be taken”.
“Us Europeans therefore do what we can to set the course for this meeting in the right way,” he says, adding that he hopes for Trump’s success.
Turning to the meeting with European leaders and Trump that just ended, Merz explains that they “looked in detail” at the various details, and they will continue discussions in the Coalition of the Willing meeting, due to begin shortly.
The message to Trump was that Ukrainian and European security interests “need to be guaranteed”, and they “agreed” on the objectives of the talks with Putin.
He goes on to say that they made clear to Trump that Ukraine must be at the table for any future meetings, a ceasefire must come ahead of the start of the negotiations, recognising Russian-occupied territory is not on the table, Ukrainian forces must be free to defend their country, and wider negotiations must be part of a “transatlantic strategy”.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz are holding a news conference in Berlin.
Zelenskyy was scheduled to take part in talks with Merz and other European leaders earlier, followed by talks with Donald Trump and US vice president JD Vance.
We’ll be bringing you all the key updates here, and you can watch along live at the top of the page.
French President Emmanuel Macron has said US President Donald Trump is seeking a ceasefire when he meets his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Alaska on Friday.
In the next few minutes, we are expecting to hear from German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is hosting Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Berlin.
The pair had participated in a call with other European leaders, Donald Trump, and US vice president JD Vance.
They are expected to deliver a joint news conference shortly.
We’ll have live coverage here and across Sky News, so do stay with us.
Two Italian F-35 jets were scrambled from Estonia for the first time to intercept “Russian aircraft”, NATO’s air command says.
“The Italian Air Task Force, a detachment of the 32nd Wing at Amari Air Base, is on rapid alert 24\/7, demonstrating the alliance’s commitment to safeguarding NATO airspace,” the bloc added.
Our weekly Ukraine Q&A is starting now. Jayne Secker<\/a> and Michael Clarke<\/a> are ready to take your questions.
Lots of you have been in touch, and we will aim to get through as many of your questions as we can.
Use the form above if you still want to submit one.
You can watch along in the page below.
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