The leaders of France, Germany and Britain will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in London on Sunday to discuss putting pressure on Russia as it suffers military setbacks in the invasion of its neighbour, the French presidency said Friday.
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer will discuss with Zelensky the way forward at a time when “Russia, in a state of military, economic and strategic failure, is persisting unsuccessfully with a deadly war”, the Elysee said.
Ukraine recaptured more territory than it lost to Russian forces in May for the second straight month, AFP analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War showed earlier this month.
Russia’s offensive has meanwhile led to rising prices, tax hikes, two-decade-high borrowing costs, business shutdowns and labour shortages, putting the economy in its trickiest spot since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The meeting, which will get underway at Downing Street from around 1730 GMT on Sunday, will also “take stock of the work undertaken in favour of a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and on the European continent”, the French presidency said.
Zelensky proposed a face-to-face meeting with Vladimir Putin in an open letter to the Russian leader on Thursday, saying he was also ready for a “full ceasefire”.
Putin, speaking at Russia’s flagship economic forum on Friday, rejected suggestions the Russian economy had collapsed, saying “we have descended to the same level at which Eurozone countries have been experiencing growth for the past few years.”
AFP
