Merz Leaves US-Ukraine Talks in Berlin

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has left the ongoing negotiations between the US delegation and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Berlin. This was reported by the DPA news agency, citing sources from the German government.

The meeting regarding Ukraine's peace process took place at the Federal Chancellery with US presidential envoy Steve Biegun, Jared Kushner, and the Ukrainian president participating. According to the agency, Merz was present only in the initial phase of the talks and left the room after briefly greeting the participants. The discussion then continued under the moderation of his foreign and security policy adviser, Günter Sauteurs.

Merz himself shared a video of the delegations' meeting on the X social network and noted that Germany expects to achieve long-term peace in Ukraine. He emphasized that the parties still have difficult issues to discuss but expressed a willingness to move forward.

The Washington and Kyiv delegations began their meeting in Berlin to discuss US President Donald Trump's peace plan. Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky had previously publicly rejected one of the main points of this plan, but still expressed hope for constructive negotiations. However, Russia doubts that a new version of the document will be acceptable to Moscow.