European leaders are heading to Washington in an effort to prevent U.S. President Donald Trump from increasing pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and putting forth new demands on Ukraine regarding a peace settlement following talks between the American and Russian presidents, Vladimir Putin, in Alaska, according to a report by Politico, citing European diplomats.

Diplomats speaking to Politico said that "European leaders are expected to accompany Zelenskyy to ensure that key red lines are not crossed and that Ukraine is not forced to cede territory against its will in order to reach an agreement."

Diplomats noted that the biggest concern is the security of Europe. According to sources, European leaders want to see strong security guarantees as a result of the talks. "For the first time, the U.S. has clearly supported guarantees, which could break the deadlock in negotiations for a possible agreement," said one European diplomat. "The President must clearly tell Zelenskyy that the U.S. is committed to providing guarantees, and then work on specifying what those commitments entail," he added.

Diplomatic sources indicated that the trip was initiated by Finnish President Alexander Stubb and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will also join Zelenskyy in Washington for a meeting with the American president.

Following his meeting with Putin in Alaska on August 15, Trump held telephone conversations with Zelenskyy, as well as with leaders of the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland, France, the NATO Secretary General, and the President of the European Commission. Zelenskyy later stated that he plans to discuss the details of ending the conflict with Trump in Washington.

TASS/gnews.cz - GH