BERLIN, Nov. 13 (Reuters) – German Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged President Donald Trump on Friday not to bring any surprises to the expected talks between President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine.
Merz warned that some in Dublin fear this could become a ‘second Anchorage moment’, referencing the Trump‑Putin summit in Anchorage, Alaska, which European leaders considered a potentially decisive turning point in the effort to end the war in Ukraine.
He therefore made his message to the United States unequivocal: please avoid any surprises, and continue to act as part of ‘Team Europe’ and ‘Team Ukraine’.
Merz is urging EU leaders to pledge continued support for Ukraine within the framework of negotiations on the European Union’s long‑term budget.
He noted that the proposal has garnered broad support, though a final agreement remains some way off.
After meetings between U.S. and Russian representatives in Abu Dhabi this week, substantive peace talks are expected to commence in the coming weeks, with European participation for the first time, Merz said.
He rejected Russia’s call to centre Europe’s security architecture in the talks, arguing that such a framework already exists in the form of NATO.
“The forthcoming discussions must centre on one key question: within what framework can Ukraine’s security be guaranteed once peace is achieved? First, however, we must actually achieve that peace.”
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