Ukraine President Volodmyr Zelenskyy is set to meet with coalition leaders in London before a highly anticipated summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Hungary. This comes amid mounting European concerns over Ukraine's exclusion from the Budapest meeting, which has sparked fears that Kyiv may be being put under pressure to make concessions.
Zelenskyy had previously stated that his aim for the London visit was to secure security guarantees for Ukraine, but last week's meeting with Trump in Washington ended without any major breakthroughs. The US president rebuffed Ukraine's call for Tomahawk cruise missiles, which have been seen as a key component in Kyiv's efforts to defend itself against Russian aggression.
According to reports, Trump privately urged Zelenskyy to accept Russia's maximalist demands, including the surrender of the Donbas region, during a fractious White House meeting. The US president allegedly warned that Putin would "destroy" Ukraine if it did not agree to these terms.
The EU has responded by putting forward a €140bn loan for Ukraine, which would be funded by frozen Russian central bank assets. This move is seen as an attempt to put pressure on Moscow and keep financing Kyiv while the Biden administration seeks to negotiate a ceasefire with Russia.
French President Emmanuel Macron has also reiterated the importance of Europe and Ukrainians being at the negotiating table when it comes to ending the war. The Ukrainian president, Zelenskyy, had initially expressed hope that he would be able to join Putin and Trump in Budapest, but no invitation has yet been forthcoming.
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is set to speak with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, soon to lay the groundwork for the Budapest meeting. However, insiders close to Zelenskyy have warned that Putin's primary goal is to keep Trump's mood away from tough moves and secure significant concessions from Kyiv.
As tensions continue to escalate in Eastern Europe, Ukraine remains under threat from Russian aggression. The country has already seen a surge in air attacks, with its major cities and energy infrastructure coming under heavy assault as winter approaches.
Zelenskyy had previously stated that his aim for the London visit was to secure security guarantees for Ukraine, but last week's meeting with Trump in Washington ended without any major breakthroughs. The US president rebuffed Ukraine's call for Tomahawk cruise missiles, which have been seen as a key component in Kyiv's efforts to defend itself against Russian aggression.
According to reports, Trump privately urged Zelenskyy to accept Russia's maximalist demands, including the surrender of the Donbas region, during a fractious White House meeting. The US president allegedly warned that Putin would "destroy" Ukraine if it did not agree to these terms.
The EU has responded by putting forward a €140bn loan for Ukraine, which would be funded by frozen Russian central bank assets. This move is seen as an attempt to put pressure on Moscow and keep financing Kyiv while the Biden administration seeks to negotiate a ceasefire with Russia.
French President Emmanuel Macron has also reiterated the importance of Europe and Ukrainians being at the negotiating table when it comes to ending the war. The Ukrainian president, Zelenskyy, had initially expressed hope that he would be able to join Putin and Trump in Budapest, but no invitation has yet been forthcoming.
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is set to speak with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, soon to lay the groundwork for the Budapest meeting. However, insiders close to Zelenskyy have warned that Putin's primary goal is to keep Trump's mood away from tough moves and secure significant concessions from Kyiv.
As tensions continue to escalate in Eastern Europe, Ukraine remains under threat from Russian aggression. The country has already seen a surge in air attacks, with its major cities and energy infrastructure coming under heavy assault as winter approaches.
They're being put on the spot to make concessions without even having a seat at the negotiating table 
! It's like, come on, guys, can't we all just talk this out?!? 
I think it's so brave of Zelenskyy to keep pushing for those security guarantees 
. We gotta stand with Ukraine, you know?! 
The EU is doing a great job by offering that loan 
and French President Macron is speaking truth 
! We need more leaders like him in this moment of crisis 
. Fingers crossed for a peaceful resolution soon 
!
anyway, back to Ukraine... Zelenskyy should be all, "Hold up, Moscow, I'm not giving up Donbas just because Trump is breathing down my neck" 
but seriously, who knew Trump was so into geopolitics? 
does anyone know where you can get a good falafel in Budapest? 
? It's like they're trying to bully them into giving up their land or something... And Trump's comments are just outrageous - warning Putin he'd "destroy" Ukraine if they don't agree to his demands is just not acceptable. I get that it's politics and all, but come on, can't we all just get along? 
The EU's move with the loan is a good one tho, at least they're trying to support Ukraine right now... 
.
. But seriously, this is like, really important stuff. We need to stay informed and keep an eye on it. Can we get a world peace update in our next lesson? 
. what r they even talkin bout?!?! can't we jus have a world where everyone gets along & doesn't wanna blow each other up?
, I mean, who else can make a summit with Trump look all fancy & still manage to keep Ukraine in line? 
... sounds a bit too much like some classic Cold War vibes.
... can't help but wonder what's going to come out of these meetings & how it'll all shake down.
this summit is gonna be super intense!!! 
maybe putin is trying to get something out of zelenskyy? 
we need to stay calm and hope for the best 
. like, come on, trmp, be serious for once. it's not like you're a superhero with magical powers. anyway, zelenskyy's getting the eu to pony up €140bn in loans - that's still gonna put pressure on russia, but at least kyiv's got some cash to throw around 
.
their president zelenskyy is tryna secure security guarantees but it feels like europe is movin slow 
he met with trump in washington but nothin major came out of it 
and now the eu is throwin a €140bn loan to keep kyiv afloat 
but insides say putin just wnt 2 get trump 2 back down 
It's so pathetic.
And for what? So that Putin can get his way and Trump can look like he's doing something? No thanks! 