Europe locked out of Trump-Putin summit

European Union leaders were caught off guard by the announcement of the bilateral talks, which notably exclude any official European representation.

Instead of demanding a seat at the negotiating table, European leaders have called for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to be included, emphasizing that any deal between the United States and Russia must involve Ukraine directly.

Scrambling for Trump's attention

European Union leaders appealed on Tuesday to U.S. President Donald Trump to defend their security interests at a key summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin later this week over the war in Ukraine.

The Europeans are desperate to exert some influence over a Friday meeting that they have been sidelined from. It remains unclear whether even Ukraine will take part. Trump has said that he wants to see whether Putin is serious about ending the war, now in its fourth year.

But Trump has disappointed U.S. allies in Europe by saying that Ukraine will have to give up some Russian-held territory. He also said that Russia must accept land swaps, although it remains unclear what Putin might be expected to surrender.

The Europeans and Ukraine are wary that Putin, who has waged the biggest land war in Europe since 1945 and used Russia's eneergy energy to try to cow the EU, might secure favorable concessions and set the outlines of a peace deal without them.

The overarching fear for European countries is that Putin will set his sights on one of them next if he wins in Ukraine.

In a statement early on Tuesday, the leaders said that they “welcome the efforts of President Trump towards ending Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.” But, they underlined, “the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.”

“A just and lasting peace that brings stability and security must respect international law, including the principles of independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and that international borders must not be changed by force,” they said.