Merz announces new Ukraine peace plan addressing territorial issues

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Thursday that Kyiv and European allies have prepared a new Ukraine peace proposal addressing territorial issues, which will be discussed with the Americans over the weekend.

Speaking at a Berlin news conference, Merz revealed that he, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed the new peace proposal with US President Donald Trump in a Wednesday phone call.

"The main issue here is what territorial concessions Ukraine is prepared to make. However, this is a question that must be answered primarily by the (...) Ukrainian president and the Ukrainian people, as we also made clear to President Trump," Merz said.

"And if we now proceed with this process as we envisage, there will be talks with the US over the weekend. And then, there may be a meeting here in Berlin at the beginning of next week. Whether or not the US will participate depends very much on the joint drafting of the documents," he added.