MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
All eyes now on Alaska, where President Trump says he will sit down this Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The plan is for the two leaders to discuss a ceasefire deal - how to begin to end the war in Ukraine. You will notice, though, that missing from the roster is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. That's one of a number of concerns that European leaders are raising about the planned summit in Alaska. NPR Berlin correspondent Rob Schmitz is here to walk us through that concern and some of the others they're raising. Hey, Rob.
ROB SCHMITZ, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise.
KELLY: OK, so top line, what are you hearing in Europe?
SCHMITZ: Well, the biggest concern here is that, as you mentioned, the president of the country which was invaded by Russia more than three years ago has not been invited to a summit whose goal is to work out a ceasefire between it and Russia. In a joint statement over the weekend, the leaders of Europe's biggest countries said, quote, "the path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine."
KELLY: The path to peace - stay there for a second because President Trump has said - he repeated today - he says the path to peace includes Ukraine giving up territory to Russia. That is a proposition that has already - was immediately rejected by President Zelenskyy.
SCHMITZ: Right.
KELLY: Where you are, how do European leaders see an end to this war?
SCHMITZ: Well, first off, they would like an end to the hostilities so that both sides have some space to reach out - a diplomatic solution. And EU leaders stressed over the weekend that they remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force. Yesterday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told national broadcaster ARD that there can be no peace that rewards what he called Russia's aggressive actions and encourages and emboldens further action. Here's what he said.
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CHANCELLOR FRIEDRICH MERZ: (Speaking German).
SCHMITZ: And Mary Louise, Merz is saying here that Putin only acts when he's under pressure but that military pressure is not enough. He said, the sanctions against Russia announced by the U.S. have not yet been implemented, but when they are, he said, it will have a big impact on Russia's economy. Merz said, the outcome of the Alaska summit must have consequences like real sanctions in order for Putin to realize that this war cannot continue.
And I should add here that Merz was able to convince President Trump to sit down and meet with him and other key European leaders, including Zelenskyy, in what's being called an emergency virtual summit between them on Wednesday, ahead of the Alaska summit.
KELLY: Ah, OK. So this Wednesday, with the Alaska summit happening Friday.
SCHMITZ: Right.
KELLY: OK. Back to the matter of potential - emphasis on potential - territorial concessions by Ukraine. If Ukraine rejects that, and as we just have gone through, it sounds like they already have, does that on some level risk making Ukraine the scapegoat? Does it make it easier for Putin to convince Trump, hey, Ukraine is the problem. Ukraine is the reason we can't reach a peace deal?
SCHMITZ: Yeah. I mean, this is why European leaders want to be a part of this. They've had plenty of experience dealing with Putin. They know how he operates. And they are concerned that this will be Putin's message coming out of this Alaska meeting to try and drive a wedge between the U.S. and Ukraine, as well as between the U.S. and its allies in Europe.
And this is also why both Zelenskyy and European leaders such as German Chancellor Merz are approaching their comments on this summit very carefully. They're not criticizing it too harshly, so as not to put Trump on the defensive. European leaders want to be part of these talks because a hypothetical lasting peace in Ukraine will likely involve them and require their investment, both in terms of money, but also quite possibly manpower. We're talking about Europe here, and Ukraine is more or less in their backyard. So European leaders feel like they've got a crucially important stake in all of this, and they feel like they need to be at that table.
KELLY: NPR's Rob Schmitz in Berlin. Thank you, Rob.
SCHMITZ: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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