Bloomberg: Germany, France and the UK are developing a plan to involve Putin in negotiations to end the war

Ukraineʼs key allies in Europe — Germany, France, and the United Kingdom — are developing a plan to engage Russia in negotiations to end the war.

Bloomberg reports this, citing sources.

With U.S.-brokered peace talks deadlocked and Russian forces suffering mounting casualties on the front, the three countries see a potential opportunity to “bring Putin to the negotiating table” .The Kremlin is being further pressured by successful Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory, as well as signs of resistance to Putin’s war at the highest levels in Moscow, Bloomberg sources said.

The allies are working on the plan right now, as they want to avoid another difficult winter for Ukraine, when the Russians will likely continue to strike at critical infrastructure and civilians.

According to Bloomberg, Germany, France and the United Kingdom have agreed that any final decision on whether to continue talks with Putin will be up to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and Europe will not force him to adopt a strategy he does not agree with.

According to sources, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to hold talks with German and French leaders Friedrich Merz and Emmanuel Macron in the coming days.

However, some officials from these European countries believe that now is not the time to talk about negotiations with Russia, since Putin has not shown any serious attitude towards negotiations. Instead, they believe that European countries should increase pressure on the Kremlin and provide Ukraine with all the necessary weapons.

Negotiations between Ukraine, Russia and the USA

The first direct trilateral negotiations between delegations from Ukraine, the Russian Federation, and the United States took place in Abu Dhabi on January 23-24. Their main topic was the possible terms for ending the war, but the negotiators did not achieve any concrete results.

The next round of negotiations took place in Abu Dhabi on February 4-5. The parties focused on the mechanisms of the ceasefire and how it would be monitored by the United States. But the delegations were unable to finally agree on the details without political decisions at the highest level. At the same time, they agreed on the first exchange of prisoners between Ukraine and Russia in the last five months — 157 Ukrainians returned home.

After that, Ukraine, Russia, and the United States held peace talks in Geneva on February 17-18. Zelenskyy said at the time that the military had almost agreed on how to monitor the ceasefire, but there had been no progress on the issues of territories and ZNPP.

The latest round of trilateral talks between Kyiv, Washington, and Moscow took place in Geneva, Switzerland, on February 26. Particular attention was focused on the economic bloc and long-term support mechanisms for Ukraine.

In early April, Zelensky said that he had invited the American delegation to come to Kyiv for talks at the level of technical groups. This format is an alternative to the trilateral meeting with the participation of the Russian Federation, which cannot yet be held due to the war in the Middle East. At the same time, Zelensky does not believe that the negotiations have reached a dead end and insists that the trilateral meetings must be continued.

For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.