Trump says deal to end Ukraine war ‘closer than ever’ after Berlin talks

US President Donald Trump has said that an statement to extremity Russia’s warfare connected Ukraine is “closer than ever” aft cardinal leaders held talks successful Berlin, but respective officials said that important differences stay implicit territorial issues.

Trump told reporters successful the Oval Office connected Monday that helium had “very agelong and precise bully talks” with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of France, Germany, the United Kingdom and NATO.

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“We’re having tremendous enactment from European leaders. They privation to get it [the war] ended also,” helium said.

“We had galore conversations with President [Vladimir] Putin of Russia, and I deliberation we’re person present than we person been, ever, and we’ll spot what we tin do.”

Zelenskyy had earlier said that negotiations with US and European leaders were hard but productive.

The high-level discussions, involving Zelenskyy, a US delegation led by envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and European leaders, took spot successful Berlin implicit 2 days amid mounting unit from Washington for Kyiv to marque concessions to Moscow to extremity 1 of Europe’s deadliest conflicts since World War II.

In a connection pursuing the talks, European leaders said they and the US were committed to moving unneurotic to supply “robust information guarantees” to Ukraine, including a European-led “multinational unit Ukraine” supported by the US.

They said the force’s enactment would see “operating wrong Ukraine” arsenic good arsenic assisting successful rebuilding Ukraine’s forces, securing its skies and supporting safer seas. They said that Ukrainian forces should stay astatine a peacetime level of 800,000.

Two US officials, speaking to the Reuters quality agency, described the projected protections arsenic “Article 5-like”, a notation to NATO’s Article 5 communal defence pledge.

Ukraine had earlier signalled it whitethorn beryllium consenting to wantonness its ambition to articulation the NATO subject confederation successful speech for steadfast Western information guarantees.

Speaking to reporters successful Berlin, Zelenskyy said that Kyiv needed a wide knowing of the information guarantees connected connection earlier making immoderate decisions connected territorial power nether a imaginable bid settlement. He added that immoderate guarantees indispensable see effectual ceasefire monitoring.

Ukrainian officials person been cautious astir what signifier specified guarantees could take. Ukraine received information assurances backed by the US and Europe aft gaining independency successful 1991, but those did not forestall Russia’s invasions successful 2014 and 2022.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Washington had offered “considerable” information guarantees during the Berlin talks.

“What the US has placed connected the array present successful Berlin, successful presumption of ineligible and worldly guarantees, is truly considerable,” Merz said astatine a associated quality league with Zelenskyy.

“We present person the accidental for a existent bid process,” helium said, adding that territorial arrangements stay a cardinal issue. “Only Ukraine tin determine astir territorial concessions. No ifs oregon buts.”

Merz besides said it was indispensable for the European Union to scope an statement connected utilizing frozen Russian assets to enactment Ukraine to show to Moscow that continuing the warfare is futile. He warned that EU members indispensable stock the risks progressive successful appropriating those assets, oregon hazard damaging the bloc’s reputation.

Meanwhile, the EU has adopted caller sanctions targeting companies and individuals accused of helping Russia circumvent Western restrictions connected lipid exports that assistance concern the war.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Putin was “open to bid and superior decisions” but opposed to what helium described arsenic “temporary respites and subterfuges”.

Reporting from Berlin, Al Jazeera’s Dominic Kane said the result of the talks remains unclear.

“We cognize American emissaries were speaking to Ukrainians present successful Berlin yesterday and today. Talks betwixt those 2 groups person finished, according to a connection by Zelenskyy’s office,” Kane said.

“What we don’t yet cognize is however overmuch of the US-led 28-point program – parts of which were acceptable to Moscow but powerfully opposed by Kyiv and EU officials – remains intact.”

Kane added that the German authorities has presented a abstracted 10-point connection focused connected subject and quality practice alternatively than a bid settlement. European leaders are expected to proceed discussions connected the remaining areas of disagreement.

Fighting continues

Meanwhile, Ukraine said connected Monday that Russia launched 153 drones overnight, with 17 striking their targets.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said its forces destroyed 130 Ukrainian drones implicit Russian territory.

Kyiv said its underwater drones struck a Russian submarine docked astatine the Black Sea larboard of Novorossiysk. Ukraine has stepped up naval attacks successful caller weeks connected what it has described arsenic Russia-linked vessels successful the Black Sea.

Russian forces person continued to people the Ukrainian larboard metropolis of Odesa, with 2 Turkish cargo ships deed successful caller days. Kyiv said the strikes were aimed astatine Russian targets.

Zelenskyy besides accused Moscow of utilizing its attacks arsenic leverage successful bid negotiations.

He said Russia has struck each powerfulness presumption successful Ukraine arsenic portion of its run against the country’s vigor infrastructure.