German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (R) meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Ukraine Reconstruction Conference on July 10, 2025, in Rome, Italy | File Photo: Michael Kappeler/dpa
By Jörg Blank and Anna Ringle, dpa
Berlin: Foreign policy advisers from the United States, Ukraine, Germany and other countries will resume talks on a peace plan for Ukraine in Berlin on Sunday, government sources told dpa on Saturday.
Washington had previously said that US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff would travel to Berlin. The time and location of Sunday’s talks were initially not disclosed.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a number of European leaders, as well as representatives from the European Union and NATO, in the Chancellery on Monday evening.
French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer are also expected to attend the meeting. It remains unclear whether U.S. representatives will participate in the meeting in the Chancellery.
Earlier on Monday, Zelensky is expected to hold separate bilateral economic talks with Merz, according to German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius.
Since November, when a US proposal outlining a potential framework for ending the war was made public, several rounds of talks have taken place between Washington, Kiev and European partners, with various amendments and counterproposals made.
Location and Time of Talks Under Wraps
It remained unclear exactly who from the Ukrainian side would take part in Sunday’s discussions in the German capital.
Witkoff and U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, spent several days in Florida earlier this month for talks with a Ukrainian delegation.
The secretary of Ukraine’s National Security Council, Rustem Umerov, and chief of the General Staff, Andrii Hnatov, led the negotiations for Kiev. Prior to that, Witkoff and Kushner had spent hours consulting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
A high-ranking U.S. official told dpa in Washington that Witkoff would meet Zelensky and European representatives in Berlin. The official did not provide any further details on the exact timing of Witkoff’s talks, nor on the format or participants.
Trump is pressuring Ukraine to accept U.S. proposals to end the war launched by Russia in 2022. He believes that Ukraine, which is dependent on Western support, is at a military disadvantage compared with Russia.
Trump recently left open a commitment on the part of the U.S. to attend a meeting in Europe, linking it to what he saw as good prospects for progress.
Meanwhile, Putin is largely adhering to his maximum demands, such as the cession of Ukrainian territory in the east of the country. He also shows no willingness to engage in concrete negotiations with the Ukrainian president without any concessions from Zelensky.
Fighting is ongoing despite the diplomatic efforts, with both sides reporting casualties from drone strikes on Saturday.
The Defence Ministry in Moscow said the Russian military had destroyed a total of 41 Ukrainian drones, though a Ukrainian strike on Saratov killed two people.
Ukrainian officials in turn said Russia had launched more than 450 drones and 30 missiles at Ukraine overnight, injuring seven people.
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