German Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that Europeans have submitted proposals for a peace plan for Ukraine to U.S. President Donald Trump, and talks with the U.S. administration could take place as early as this weekend.
Merz made the remarks on Thursday in Berlin during a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
“Yesterday afternoon, we had an extensive phone conversation with President Trump, Emmanuel Macron, Keir Starmer, and myself, and we discussed the upcoming process over the next few days. We proposed that we, together with the U.S. administration, finalize discussions on the documents. This was a proposal he was not aware of during our phone conversation, as it was sent to the Americans later. We indeed sent this document late in the day, and it concerned territorial concessions that Ukraine could potentially accept. But this was a matter the Ukrainian president and the Ukrainian people must respond to. And that’s exactly what we told President Trump,” the German chancellor said.
According to Merz, if the process continues
“in the form we envision, talks with the U.S. administration will take place over the weekend, and early next week, a meeting in Berlin may occur. Whether the U.S. administration participates in this meeting largely depends on the documents we are working on at that time. I am confident we will succeed, and during my phone call with President Trump, I got a very clear impression that he is ready to embark on this path with us, because he understands that Europeans want to be heard in their interests. That is exactly what I clearly communicated during our conversation yesterday, and it was a very constructive discussion. We truly showed respect for each other’s perspectives,” Merz emphasized.
