The four heads of state in London: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selenskyj, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron (from left to right).Image: keystone
June 8, 2026, 1:54 p.mJune 8, 2026, 1:54 p.m
The heads of state of Great Britain, France, Germany and Ukraine met for talks in London on Sunday. In a joint statement, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, President Emmanuel Macron, Chancellor Friedrich Merz and President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Russian President Vladimir Putin for an immediate ceasefire and negotiations to end the war.
According to SRF They named five points as conditions for a “just and lasting peace”:
- An end to the fighting.
- The current front line should be the starting point for negotiations.
- Ukraine must receive “robust and legally binding” security guarantees once a ceasefire comes into force.
- Russian assets will remain frozen until Russia ends its war of aggression and compensates Ukraine for the damage caused by the war.
- European security interests must be safeguarded in any agreement.
Zelenskyj now sees Putin’s turn
Zelenskyj would support the participation of the USA and European states in possible peace negotiations, writes Time. At the same time, the Ukrainian president would also be willing to hold bilateral talks with the Russian president, as he wrote in an open letter last week. Putin refused.
Zelenskyj now sees Vladimir Putin’s turn. He had already given several signals about possible discussions, but these had always fallen silent, he told the British broadcaster “Sky News”.
In the weeks leading up to the meeting, both sides intensified their air attacks. As “Zeit” writes, Zelensky asked for additional anti-aircraft missiles to protect the Ukrainian energy infrastructure in view of the coming winter.
Germany, France and Great Britain are now planning to campaign for greater support for Ukraine and further economic sanctions against Russia at the G7 summit in Evian next week, writes the Guardian. The heads of state are hoping for more military support for Ukraine from the NATO summit in July. This is intended to increase pressure on Putin and make negotiations more realistic. (Nile)