U.S., Ukraine and European allies plan to huddle in U.K. ahead of Trump-Putin summit

Senior officials from the U.S., Ukraine and several European countries plan to meet this weekend in the U.K. to try to reach common positions ahead of the planned meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, three sources with knowledge of the plans tell Axios. Why it matters: Ukraine and several NATO allies are privately concerned that Trump might agree to Putin's proposals for ending the war without taking their positions into consideration.The idea for an in-person meeting in the U.K. came up in a conference call on Friday between U.S., Ukrainian and European officials, the third such call in as many days.The logistics of the proposed meeting are still under discussion, including who will take part.Driving the news: The new momentum in Ukraine talks started earlier this week after White House envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow, just two days before Trump's ceasefire-or-sanctions ultimatum for Putin was due to expire.While Trump signed an executive order earlier this week that allows sanctions on countries that buy Russian oil, and also announced a planned tariff hike on India, he didn't announce new sanctions as planned on Friday.Behind the scenes: On Wednesday, Trump held a conference call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and several European leaders to brief them on Witkoff's meeting with Putin. Two sources said Witkoff told the participants that Putin agreed to end the war if Ukraine agrees to cede its Luhansk and Donetsk regions, which Russian forces have mostly occupied since the invasion, as well as Crimea.According to the sources, at least some participants of the call came away with the impression Putin had agreed to give up his claim to two other Ukrainian territories that Russia partially controls: Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. That would have been a meaningful concession relative to previous Russian positions.However, when Witkoff held another video call with senior Ukrainian and European officials the next day, he said Putin had agreed to freeze Russia's current positions in those regions. That would leave significant parts of both under Russian occupation, including the strategic Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.During the latest conference call, on Friday, the parties discussed the possibility of meeting in-person to try to coordinate a joint position."We focused on coordinating positions to bring a sustainable and just peace for Ukraine as soon as possible. We are ready to work as productively as possible to save lives and stop the fighting," Zelensky's chief of staff Andriy Yermak wrote on X after the call.Between the lines: Ukrainian officials say they're confused about the details of the Russian proposal, and about the U.S. position.A Ukrainian official told Axios that even if Zelensky agreed to Putin's demands, he would need to call a referendum because he can't cede territory under Ukraine's constitution. What's next: Trump said Friday that he will announce the date and location of his meeting with Putin soon, and claimed "we are getting very close" to a deal.He said the potential deal would include "some swapping of territories to the betterment of both countries" and stressed he is trying to get some of the territory Russia occupied during the war back to Ukraine. Trump said Zelensky is making arrangements that will allow him "to sign something" in a way the doesn't violate Ukrainian law.The White House has declined to comment about the ally meeting plans. Go deeper: Witkoff to brief Ukrainian and NATO officials on Putin meetingPutin says he wants to meet Trump, possibly in UAE

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