German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Russia must take the next step toward peace in Ukraine, otherwise the West will be forced to take it.
Merz, speaking at a Berlin press conference alongside visiting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of using “delay tactics” to avoid negotiating a ceasefire with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Merz added that Putin had, “made the meeting contingent upon pre-conditions that from a Ukrainian, and also from our, from my personal perspective, are totally unacceptable.”
Continuing, Merz said that if the “Russian side doesn’t take the next step, then more pressure is needed.”
“If the meeting agreed to by [US President Donald] Trump and Putin doesn’t take place, then the ball is in our court. With us, I mean the Europeans and the Americans,” he said, adding that the EU was already working on a new set of sanctions.
Canada’s Carney echoed Merz’s sentiments regarding Putin’s slow-walking and the need to strengthen support for Ukraine more than three years into its grueling defensive war.
Carney said Canada is focused on bringing peace and security to Ukraine and eager to contribute to its ability to defend itself. He also noted that credible security guarantees would be the bedrock of peace in Ukraine.
The meeting in question is one that Trump promised a little over a week ago when he welcomed Putin to Alaska with applause and a red carpet. After the two met, Trump suggested a bilateral meeting between the Russian and his Ukrainian counterpart as well as a possible trilateral meeting including himself, was just around the corner.
At the time, Trump offered his standard two-week deadline for the meting to happen. That deadline is approaching on Friday with no indication that a meeting will take place.