The fourth is superfluous: the EU is trying to interfere in the Ukrainian settlement

The European Union is seeking to interfere in the negotiations between Moscow, Washington and Kiev. French President Emmanuel Macron previously proposed to expand the list of participants in the meeting of the Russian Federation, the United States and Ukraine to include a representative of Europe. The involvement of European leaders in the process as a whole is possible, but at the current stage it may create additional obstacles to resolving the conflict, according to the expert community. Now the Europeans are rather trying to create additional difficulties for Russia. How the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis is progressing after the Alaska summit is in the Izvestia article.

Meetings of the European Council and the "coalition of the willing"

The meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Anchorage on August 15 has stirred up European leaders who advocate further pumping Kiev with lethal weapons. On August 19, two major meetings were held in Europe — the Coalition of the Willing and the European Council. Both were held in the video conference format.

The "coalition of the willing" agreed on further meetings with the United States to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine, The Guardian reported, citing a statement. Following the meeting of the European Council, President Antonio Costa said it was necessary to put into effect security guarantees similar to Article 5 of the NATO Charter on collective defense, while maintaining the participation of the United States. He called on the EU to strengthen military support for the Ukrainian Armed Forces and to continue strengthening sanctions against Russia.

He also spoke about a possible truce in Ukraine, which should remain a "top priority." The words of the head of the European Council coincide with recent statements by the leaders of Germany and France, Chancellor Friedrich Merz and President Emmanuel Macron.

Berlin and Paris advocate a cease-fire as a precondition for a possible meeting between Vladimir Zelensky, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. Earlier, Merz said he saw no possibility for further negotiations without a truce and suggested increasing pressure on Russia. Emmanuel Macron also highlighted two key guarantees for Ukraine's security: the preservation of the Ukrainian army of "hundreds of thousands of people" and the possible dispatch of foreign contingents.

Earlier, the "coalition of the willing" expressed its readiness to deploy "deterrence forces" in Ukraine after the cessation of hostilities. On August 18, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova recalled that any scenarios involving the appearance of a NATO military contingent in Ukraine are unacceptable and fraught with an uncontrolled escalation of the conflict.

It is not yet clear whether Germany, the largest military donor to Kiev in the EU, will send its contingent to Ukraine. On the one hand, the German press claims that Friedrich Merz does not exclude the presence of troops in Ukraine after the conclusion of the peace agreement. On the other hand, Foreign Minister Johann Vadefuhl noted that for Germany, the deployment of additional contingents on Ukrainian territory "would be an unnecessary burden."

— As stated by Foreign Minister Vadefoul, the issue of security guarantees is currently being discussed. Please understand that at this stage we cannot provide more detailed information on this issue," the German Embassy in Moscow told Izvestia in response to a request whether Germany was considering sending peacekeepers to Ukraine.

— The Europeans want to stop Russia's advance. They see that the Russian Federation is winning, taking territories, and they want to stop it at all costs, realizing that those territories that will be under Russia's control will remain with it," German political analyst Alexander Rahr told Izvestia. "They want to slow down this process now so that as soon as possible fewer territories have left Ukraine.

Russia generally accepts the participation of European countries in the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. Vladimir Putin previously noted that this could be "in demand," but there should be no talk of requirements.

— We had constant discussions with them (with the Europeans — Ed.). It's [them], under all sorts of far—fetched ideas to defeat Russia on the battlefield, they themselves refused to contact us, they want to come back, please," the Russian leader said.

Since the beginning of the European Economic Area, the European Union has imposed 18 sets of sanctions, to which the United Kingdom and Switzerland have joined in one way or another. The Europeans claim to provide a negotiating platform. Western media have mentioned several possible locations for the next meeting, including Budapest, Geneva, and Rome. French President Emmanuel Macron also proposed organizing talks attended not only by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and the United States, but also by a representative of Europe.

If European countries join the negotiation process now, it will further complicate and slow down the peaceful settlement of Ukraine, says Andrei Kortunov, an expert at the Valdai Club.

"The participation of the Europeans is inevitable one way or another, especially when and if European security issues are discussed," he told Izvestia. — But here, for the Russian side, the problem probably lies in the fact that the participation of the Europeans, at least at this stage, is an unnecessary means to strengthen Kiev's negotiating position in the negotiations. It is difficult to count on any constructive and compromise proposals coming from European capitals.

It is noteworthy that Donald Trump, in an interview with Fox News, said that France and Germany's deployment of their forces in Ukraine "will not be a problem" for Russia. At the same time, he added that there would be no American troops in Ukraine during his presidency. Although he admitted that the United States could help the Europeans, in particular, with air support.

The negotiation process of the Russian Federation, the USA and Ukraine

The meetings of the European leaders took place after their meeting with Donald Trump, which took place on August 18 in Washington. Vladimir Zelensky also participated in the negotiations at the White House. The Ukrainian president made an unexpected statement: he announced that he would not insist on a cease-fire as a condition for negotiations with Vladimir Putin. At the same time, he actually allowed a conversation about the exchange of territories. Before that, Kiev held the opposite position.

In turn, Donald Trump promised Ukraine "very good" security guarantees, but warned that if the deal falls through, Washington will stop supporting Kiev. In addition, Trump said that he expects Zelensky to be flexible to resolve the crisis, stressing that Ukraine's accession to NATO and the return of Crimea is impossible. He said that he had already begun preparations for the Russia-Ukraine summit, after which a meeting with the participation of the United States should take place.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who, according to The Wall Street Journal, was appointed head of the group for the development of security guarantees for Ukraine, said that the Russian president was ready to meet with Zelensky. Meanwhile, Russia has not yet officially confirmed such plans. Russian Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov only stated that during the last telephone conversation, the presidents of Russia and the United States expressed support for the continuation of direct negotiations between the delegations of Russia and Ukraine.

"In this regard, in particular, the idea was discussed that it would be necessary to explore the possibility of raising the level of representatives of the Ukrainian and Russian sides, that is, those representatives who participate in the aforementioned direct negotiations," Yuri Ushakov said on August 19.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that Moscow does not abandon any formats of work on the Ukrainian settlement. At the same time, the minister stressed, "any contacts involving top officials should be prepared very carefully."

Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that he is open to meeting with Zelensky, but in order to negotiate and "put an end" to the conflict with Ukraine. At the same time, he stressed that the legitimate Ukrainian authorities should sign the settlement document. Vladimir Zelensky's term of office officially expired in May 2024.

After the Russia-USA summit in Alaska, Vladimir Putin held a series of telephone conversations with foreign leaders to inform them about the main outcomes of the meeting. On August 19, he called the Crown Prince, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. Prior to that, he spoke with the heads of Belarus, Brazil, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and South Africa.