European leaders to hold crisis talks over US peace plan for Ukraine

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other European leaders will meet on the margins of the G20 summit in Johannesburg for crisis talks on how to respond to the latest US plan for an end to the war in Ukraine.

The leaders of France, Italy and the United Kingdom are expected to attend the meeting on Saturday alongside Merz and top EU officials, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who announced the meeting on X.

Ireland, Finland, the Netherlands, Spain and Norway - which are this year's guest countries at the G20 group of leading economies - have also been invited.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X that he had informed von der Leyen and EU Council President António Costa about the US proposals, and that they were "working in concert to ensure this becomes a joint and fully aligned plan."

Von der Leyen and Costa said after the talks with Zelensky that "there should be nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine."

The US plan revealed this week would require Ukraine to make significant concessions, including withdrawing from parts of eastern Ukraine that Russia has not conquered, reducing the size of it military and renouncing NATO membership.

US President Donald Trump has given Kyiv until Thursday to officially respond to the plan.