The five principles Trump promises to follow with Putin

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European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky needed one last phone call with Donald Trump before the US president locks himself away at the Elmendorf-Richardson military base in Anchorage with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arranged the meeting between the leaders and invited Zelensky to Berlin. The call took place in a secure room, and to demonstrate maximum coordination and develop a unified approach to present to the US president, Merz, Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron , Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni , British Prime Minister Keir Starmer , the leaders of Finland and Poland , NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen held a preliminary phone call. Before the video call, the US president announced he would speak with European leaders: "They are fantastic people, they want to see a deal done." During the conversation, Trump reportedly approved five principles to be upheld during the meeting with Putin : not promising any territorial concessions, not separating these requests from security guarantees for Kyiv, calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire, and a new meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky to discuss territorial issues and other aspects of the war, such as the return of abducted children from occupied territories. Trump agreed on everything, demonstrating his awareness that he could not completely exclude the United States from providing security guarantees to Kyiv.

In recent days, the United States has attempted to lower expectations for the meeting; the White House had called the summit "a listening exercise." During the phone call with the Europeans, however, the White House chief said he wanted to secure a ceasefire, an important and essential goal for any negotiation. So far, Putin has subverted the diplomatic order, having met with Trump before negotiating. An American official spoke to Axios and admitted that the American president is pleased with Putin, but added: "We're optimistic, but we're not crazy. It's tough." Trump, after the conversation with the Europeans, reiterated that if Moscow doesn't accept an agreement, he will face serious consequences. The Europeans and Zelensky have the feeling that Trump isn't yielding to Putin's demands, but no one knows what will happen when the meeting room closes. Putin is expected to try to offer Trump elements of economic or diplomatic cooperation, as in the Middle East.

Alaska won't be decisive; the White House president also confirmed yesterday the possibility of a three-way meeting with himself, Zelensky, and Putin. The Kremlin leader disagrees, not recognizing the Ukrainian president as the legitimate president of Ukraine. Yesterday , however, discussions were held about where to hold the next summit. Two options were put on the table: Geneva, Switzerland, or the Vatican. It was Zelensky, supported by Meloni, who proposed the second option. Europeans will learn the outcome of the meeting in Anchorage during the update phone calls already scheduled for Saturday. Trump, Zelensky, and several European leaders, including Giorgia Meloni, who will be meeting in London , will attend. Keith Kellogg, the US envoy for Ukraine, may also attend.

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