Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy insisted that “the core principle that kept Europe peaceful longer than at any other time in its history must be respected,” as borders should not be changed by force.
Speaking via a videolink at the opening session of the Crimea Platform parliamentary summit in Sweden, he warned that if this principle “does not work in Europe, then were will it work?”
Talking about the Geneva talks this weekend, he said Ukraine was “working closely with the US, with European partners, and many, many others to define steps that can end Russia’s war against us … and bring real security”
He said that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, wanted to get “legal recognition for what he has stolen to break the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty.”
He praised the talks with the US, saying they agreed on “extremely sensitive” points on the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war and Ukrainain children abducted by Russia, but noted that “to achieve real peace, more is needed.”
“We all continue working with partners, especially the United States, and look for compromises that strengthen but not weaken us, and we will continue explaining how dangerous it is to pretend that aggression is something one can simply overlook and move on.”
He urged leaders to “not be passive observers of history” and “do not stay silent,” but defend the key principles of postwar peace in Europe: “that borders cannot be changed by force, that war criminals must not escaped justice, and that the aggressor must pay fully for the war it started.”
Picking up on that last point, he said that “this is why decisions on Russian assets are essential,” as he asked them to “support these decisions and keep pressure on Russia.”
Key events
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EU’s Costa spoke with Zelenskyy before EU leaders’ talks on Ukraine
European Council president António Costa said he spoke with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy “to get his assessment of the situation” ahead of today’s informal EU leaders’ meeting on Ukraine on the sidelines of the EU-Africa summit.
“A united and coordinated EU position is key in ensuring a good outcome of peace negotiations – for Ukraine and for Europe,” he added.
ShareNo plans for Russia-US meetings this week so far, Kremlin says
Meanwhile, we are getting a line from the Kremlin saying there are no plans for meeting of Russian and US delegations this week so far, and that Moscow has now been kept informed about the progress made in Geneva.
A Kremlin spokesperson also denied to comment on reported changes requested by European leaders, saying it’d be wrong to conduct these negotiations via the media, Reuters reported.
ShareUkraine needs to be at table for peace talks to avoid new Munich agreement, Czech Republic’s Pavel says
Over the weekend, Czech president Petr Pavel insisted that Ukraine must be fully included in any peace settlement talks with Russia, stating the country’s exclusion from talks would prompt parallels with the 1938 Munich Agreement, saying: “it is their territory, it is their country, their people, their lives.”
Czech President Petr Pavel at Prague Castle, in Prague, Czech Republic. Photograph: Martin Divíšek/EPA
Speaking to Polish broadcaster TVN24+ in an interview conducted before the Geneva talks, Pavel warned that any decisions without Ukraine’s substantial involvement would risk drawing similarities with Munich “and we Czechs know very well how it feels.”
In 1938, the UK, the French Republic, fascist Italy, and Nazi Germany signed an agreement that was meant to appease Adolf Hitler’s growing appetite for territorial expansion by allowing for the annexation of parts of Czechoslovakia (which was not represented). It was formally called “the Munich agreement,” although the Czechs and the Slovaks often refer to it as “The Munich betrayal.”
Pavel also pushed back on some of the other reported original demands from Russia, for example restrictions on Ukraine’s ability to join alliances, such as Nato or the EU.
But the Czech president, a former Nato general who served on the alliance’s military committee, also conceded that while he fully understood that “the very notion of losing even an inch of territory is extremely painful” to Ukrainians, with the current state of play on the battlefield “realistically, some loss of territory [to Russia] is very probable.”
He insisted, however, that any such territory should never be recognised as “legally Russian territory.”
Drawing on his security experience, Pavel also said that the collective west should be looking to settle some broader issues with Russia, renewing treaties on arms control and regulating military exercises.
But he stressed:
“I have never seen any idea within my time in Nato – and I spent in Nato many years – I haven’t seen any single plan that would suggest attacking Russia.
I asked the Russians, when they were still in Nato, in a number of Nato-Russia Council meetings, if they seriously mean that there is anyone in Nato who would like to invade Russia.
We only act to defend the territory. We don’t have any interest in controlling vast Russian territory with so many problems. They will have to deal with their problems themselves. … It’s to protect against a country that proved number of times to be aggressive.”
Pavel also warned Nato members about showing internal divisions, saying that if Russia ever “comes to an understanding that we are weak or undecisive enough for them to act, they would use the opportunity.”
“So far, we were able to deter effectively [any] Russian aggression against a Nato ally.
But he said that if Nato partners show that they “lack determination to defend each other,” it could create some space for Russia to exploit it: “if not to grab a new territory, then to humiliate us, because this [has been] one of their objectives over a long time: to destabilise both Nato and the EU, to sow disunity and distrust to institutions.”
“How how can you better demonstrate the weakness of Nato then by doing a limited military action against a remote Nato country, let’s say part of Estonia, and create internal debate [on] if we all really want to go to war with Russia over a piece of land in Estonia? And if the decision is not to launch Article 5, not to stand firmly by a small ally and by a small chunk of his territory, it will be a big victory for Russia.”
Asked if Nato had what it needed to defend an allied territory or was there a question mark over its ability to respond, he said:
“I wouldn’t say it’s a big question mark. but, frankly, we have some more homework to do.”
ShareLithuania’s Budrys welcomes Geneva talks, raises concerns about Belarus
Over in Brussels, EU ministers are meeting for discussions on trade, including specifically with the US, with two senior US representatives – trade representative Jamieson Greer and treasury secretary Howard Lutnick – joining them for lunch.
EU trade commissioner, Maroš Šefčovič, described his talks with US counterparts as “constructive,” even as he added that “more work lies ahead.”
But numerous ministers chose to address the Ukraine talks over the weekend in their comments, stressing the need to find a way forward that works for Europe.
Lithuania’s Kęstutis Budrys said that “it was good that we once again have the [peace] process” and he welcomed signals that “the talks are progressively improving.”
But he also warned that several parts concerning Europe’s security must not be discussed without Europe, as “we know what Russia wants: Russia wants to dismantle Nato, … to push out Americans from Europe, and to review the security architecture” in Europe.
Budrys also spoke about Lithuania’s growing frustration with continuing airspace violations by meteorological balloons launched from Belarus, which regularly force airport closures, with Vilnius airport closing twice in the last 24 hours.
He said he would raise these issues during today’s talks, as more than 30,000 passengers were affected in recent weeks, and more than 200 flights redirected. “We cannot function normally,” he said.
But he said that Belarus also keeps seizing Lithuanian trucks and semitrailers “and blackmailing us, putting pressure on our economy.”
“This combined attacks has to be met with response from the EU,” he said.
Updated at 04.05 EST
Sweden’s Maria Malmer Stenergard also said it was “nothing but a disgrace” that the EU’s support for Ukraine remained “smaller than the collective purchase of Russian oil and gas since the full scale invasion.”
“This needs to change now,” she said.
She pointedly supported the idea of “moving forward with the reparations loan,” which continues to be blocked over Belgium’s concerns about the legal side of such move.
“As Russia’s brutal war of aggression enters its fourth winter, I am urging international partners to help strengthen Ukraine by providing substantial military and civilian support,” she said.
ShareSweden will not recognise Russia’s illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories, Swedish foreign minister says
Speaking on behalf of the hosts, the Swedish foreign minister, Maria Malmer Stenergard, struck similar tones, stressing that Ukraine has repeatedly signaled its readiness to agree to a full, unconditional ceasefire, negotiate the peace settlement – but Russia has not.
She said:
“Since Russia has not changed its position, neither has Sweden nor the EU.
Our position remains that to achieve a just and lasting peace, borders cannot be changed by force. There cannot be limitations on Ukraine’s armed forces that will invite further Russian aggression, and there cannot be any limitations on the full sovereign rights of the Ukrainian people to choose their own path, which includes the path to EU membership.
An agreement that includes those main elements that truly respects Ukraine’s sovereignty and that has the support of its people … will also have our support. But as long as the Russian aggression continues, Sweden has a clear two point plan to strengthen Ukraine and weaken Russia. You can count on our support.”
She pointedly says that in Sweden’s view, Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia all remain Ukrainian.
“Let me be clear, Sweden will not recognise Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea or any other part of Ukraine’s territory. We will not reward aggression.”
ShareUkraine ready to move to peace with three key red lines, Ukrainian parliament speaker says
Speaking at the same event, Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, Verkhovna Rada, insisted that Ukraine was ready to move to “a genuine peace,” but outlined three red lines for Kyiv in any talks “which no one has the right to cross: physically, legally, morally.”
He listed them as:
no legal recognition of the Russian occupation of Ukrainian territories
no restrictions on Ukraine’s defence forces
no veto on Ukraine’s right to choose its future alliances.
Stefanchuk added that “any genuine peace process must be based on a very clear principle: nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine, and nothing about Europe without Europe.”
He also stressed that any agreement must not violate the country’s constitution, which also repeats some of these points, for example on territory.
He also picked up Zelenskyy’s points on Russian frozen assets, saying diverting them for Ukraine to use would be “the price for the lives taken and the price for the destruction inflicted” by Moscow.
Stefanchuk also said that Ukraine’s membership of the EU and Nato should be part of future security guarantees, arguing that “only under these conditions will Russia retreat, because it will finally understand it cannot overcome” Ukraine’s yearning to confirm its status as part of the democratic world.
ShareUkraine working with US to look ‘compromises that strengthen, not weaken us,’ Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy insisted that “the core principle that kept Europe peaceful longer than at any other time in its history must be respected,” as borders should not be changed by force.
Speaking via a videolink at the opening session of the Crimea Platform parliamentary summit in Sweden, he warned that if this principle “does not work in Europe, then were will it work?”
Talking about the Geneva talks this weekend, he said Ukraine was “working closely with the US, with European partners, and many, many others to define steps that can end Russia’s war against us … and bring real security”
He said that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, wanted to get “legal recognition for what he has stolen to break the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty.”
He praised the talks with the US, saying they agreed on “extremely sensitive” points on the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war and Ukrainain children abducted by Russia, but noted that “to achieve real peace, more is needed.”
“We all continue working with partners, especially the United States, and look for compromises that strengthen but not weaken us, and we will continue explaining how dangerous it is to pretend that aggression is something one can simply overlook and move on.”
He urged leaders to “not be passive observers of history” and “do not stay silent,” but defend the key principles of postwar peace in Europe: “that borders cannot be changed by force, that war criminals must not escaped justice, and that the aggressor must pay fully for the war it started.”
Picking up on that last point, he said that “this is why decisions on Russian assets are essential,” as he asked them to “support these decisions and keep pressure on Russia.”
ShareMorning opening: Can Europe change the US-Russian plan?
Jakub Krupa
As my colleague Luke Harding reported overnight, the US and Ukraine said they had created an “updated and refined peace framework” to end the war with Russia, hours after European countries proposed their own radical alternative that omitted some of the pro-Russia points made in an original US-backed document that was leaked last week.
It is not clear what’s the current text of the proposed peace deal.
Head of the office of the president of Ukraine Andriy Yermak, left, and US secretary of state Marco Rubio talk to the press as their consultations continue at the US Mission to International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland. Photograph: Martial Trezzini/AP
But the European counterproposal sought to radically overhaul the original plan in a bid to force the US to change its thinking and consider Ukrainian and European interests, too.
Offering his first reaction to the progress made over the weekend, Germany’s Johann Wadephul struck an optimistic tone as he said this morning that the talks produced a “decisive success” for the European side, and insisted that “all issues concerning Europe, including those concerning Nato, have been removed from this plan.”
“It was clear from the outset, as we have repeatedly said, that any agreement must not be reached over the heads of Europeans and Ukrainians,” he added.
Finland’s influential president, Alexander Stubb, considered to be one of the European leaders with best access to US president Donald Trump, was markedly more cautious.
After his debrief call with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he said the talks marked “a step forward,” but “there are still major issues which remain to be resolved.”
But the talks don’t stop here, and the EU leaders will be meeting to discuss the issue further in Luanda, the capital of Angola, on the margins of the EU-Africa summit.
Lots to cover today as talks on Ukraine enter what could be a decisive phase. I will bring you all the key updates here.
It’s Monday, 24 November 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.