All Eyes on Alaska: European leaders want to speak to Trump before Putin summit, Vance says US tired of funding Ukraine military

All eyes are on the Alaska summit of US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the Ukraine war. European leaders issued a joint statement this past weekend asking Ukraine's participation in the talks. Ahead of Trump's press conference on Monday (Aug 11) where he's likely to talk about Friday's summit, his deputy JD Vance said the Americans are tired of arming Ukraine against Russia. Here's how things are unfolding amid intense diplomacy.

Europe scrambles ahead of Trump-Putin summit, wants to avoid side deal

European leaders are seeking to speak with Trump before the Putin talks in order to avoid a side deal that omits the presence of Ukraine on the table.

They're afraid that the summit could marginalise Ukraine from peace talks. The European concerns arise from fears that Trump may pressure Ukraine to make territorial concessions while chasing a peace deal.

In a joint statement on Saturday, leaders from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland, the UK, and the EU declared that the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.

"We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force,” they said in a joint statement that also called for a “just and lasting peace,” with “robust and credible” security guarantees for Ukraine.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Europe hoped and expected that Zelenskyy will be included in the Alaska talks.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised Trump’s willingness to impose secondary sanctions on Russia and increase US weapons flow. “Next Friday will be important because it will be about testing Putin — how serious he is — on bringing this terrible war to an end," he said.

Buy US weapons if you're so concerned: JD Vance's blunt reply to Europeans ahead of Trump-Putin summit

In blunt remarks, Vice President JD Vance asked the Europeans to foot the bill if they want to fund the Ukrainian war machine.
“Americans, I think, are sick of continuing to send their money, their tax dollars,” He told Fox News channel in an interview. “If the Europeans want to step up and actually buy the weapons from American producers, we're OK with that — but we're not going to fund it ourselves anymore.”

What do Russia and Ukraine want to end the war?

Trump's idea of “some swapping of territories" is causing concern. The White House said Trump was open to a three-way meeting with Zelensky “at a later time,” while Vance claimed that Putin had agreed to meet Zelenskyy but that scheduling remained an issue.

Russia wants Ukraine to cede eastern and southern territories, abandon its NATO aspirations, and accept military limitations in exchange for Russian withdrawal of forces.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is not relenting. He said the end of the war "must be fair”, rejecting any territory concessions to Russia.

Zelenskyy said the Ukrainians "will not give their land to the occupier.”
“We will not give Russia any awards for what it has done.”

Political divisions in Washington ahead of Trump- Putin summit

Washington politicians are divided on the Trump administration’s approach. Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen slammed the president for missing his own deadline on further Russia sanctions, saying, “Setting deadlines and blowing through them deeply undermines America’s credibility.”

On the other hand, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham defended the president’s strategy, saying Trump "is going to go to meet Putin from a position of strength, that he’s going to look out for Europe and Ukrainian needs to end this war honourably.”

Graham also agreed to the territorial concessions, saying, “There will be some land swaps at the end.”