European leaders have rallied behind a fresh push for peace in Ukraine, throwing their support behind former U.S. President Donald Trump’s call for an immediate ceasefire as the war grinds into its fourth year. In a rare display of unity across the Atlantic, leaders from Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, and the European Commission released a joint statement on October 21, 2025, endorsing Trump’s proposal for fighting to stop along current battle lines and for peace talks to begin as soon as possible, according to Invezz.
The declaration, signed by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, marks a significant diplomatic shift. Trump’s plan, which suggests using the current line of contact as the starting point for negotiations and proposes splitting Ukraine’s Donbas region “the way it is”—effectively leaving much of it under Russian control—has been controversial. Yet, European leaders echoed his stance, stating, “We strongly support President Trump’s position that the fighting should stop immediately, and that the current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations.” The statement also underscored that international borders “must not be changed by force,” a nod to Ukraine’s sovereignty concerns.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was included in the joint statement and, according to Invezz, has reportedly accepted the idea of freezing fighting along existing frontlines. This signals Kyiv’s readiness to engage in renewed peace efforts, coordinated with Western partners. French President Macron confirmed Zelenskiy will attend a meeting of Ukraine’s allies in London on October 24, as part of the “Coalition of the Willing”—a diplomatic initiative aimed at accelerating peace negotiations and post-war reconstruction planning.
But despite this surge in diplomatic activity, the war’s brutal realities persist. On October 21, Russian drone strikes battered Ukraine’s Chernihiv region, killing four people and leaving hundreds of thousands without power and water, as reported by BBC. Around 20 drones hit the northern town of Novhorod-Siverskyi, damaging homes and critical energy infrastructure. Bohdan Nikiporets, co-owner of KK café house in Shostka, described the toll on daily life: “Our business runs 16 hours per day. And it’s all on power stations, generators, like diesel or fuel generators. So we had to buy another one because one could not run so long. Basically for two weeks we haven’t had an hour of light in here. No electricity whatsoever.”
The strikes are part of what Kyiv says is Moscow’s renewed campaign to cripple Ukraine’s energy grid ahead of winter, raising the stakes for both civilians and negotiators. While European officials push for talks, they are equally adamant about maintaining economic pressure on Moscow. The joint statement emphasized, “We must ramp up the pressure on Russia’s economy and its defence industry, until Putin is ready to make peace.” Ursula von der Leyen confirmed that leaders would discuss measures to use the full value of Russia’s immobilized sovereign assets—estimated in the hundreds of billions—to support Ukraine’s financial needs during and after any ceasefire. The Brussels summit will also consider tightening sanctions on Russia’s defense sector and expanding restrictions on technology exports, aiming to sap Moscow’s ability to sustain the war.
Meanwhile, the diplomatic process remains fraught with uncertainty. Trump had announced plans to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hungary in the coming weeks to discuss ending the conflict. However, as of October 22, a planned summit remains on hold with no fixed date, according to BBC. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted there was “nothing to delay because no date was ever set,” adding, “We need preparation, serious preparation. This may take time.” Peskov also accused NATO countries of undermining peace, claiming, “The Europeans are not the supporters of peace now. Neither are they a side which contributes to achieving peace by means of political and diplomatic contacts. On the contrary, they incite the Kyiv regime in every possible way to continue the war.”
This sharply contrasts with Washington’s tone. President Trump, speaking at a Cabinet meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, cast doubt on Ukraine’s chances of military victory but still held out hope for a negotiated peace. “Well they could. They could still win it. I don’t think they will but they could still win. I never said they would win it. I said they could win. Anything can happen, you know, war is a very strange thing,” Trump said, as quoted by BBC. He also acknowledged the staggering human cost of the conflict, noting that both sides are losing “five to 7,000 soldiers a week.” Nevertheless, Trump indicated that any meeting now would be unproductive: “I don’t want to have a wasted meeting. I don’t want to have a waste of time. So I’ll see what happens. ...You got two countries that are killing each other. The two countries are losing five to 7,000 soldiers a week. So we’ll see what happens. It’s...we haven’t made a determination.”
For his part, President Zelenskiy insists that Ukraine remains ready for a ceasefire, but only if Russia demonstrates genuine interest in diplomacy rather than using talks as a stalling tactic. “The frontline can spark diplomacy. Instead, Russia continues to do everything to weasel out of diplomacy. The greater Ukraine’s long-range reach, the greater Russia’s willingness to end the war. The discussion on Tomahawks turned out to be a major investment in diplomacy. ... We forced Russia to reveal that Tomahawks are precisely the card they take seriously,” Zelenskiy said, as reported by BBC. He argues that strength, not compromise, will bring Russia to the negotiating table, and that Western hesitation to supply long-range weapons has only emboldened Moscow.
The next few days will see a flurry of high-level meetings in Brussels and London, where European leaders will weigh additional sanctions on the Kremlin and new financial aid packages for Ukraine. While the diplomatic track is being revived, the war’s devastation continues to shape the urgency and tone of negotiations. As leaders wrangle over ceasefires and the future of contested regions, ordinary Ukrainians are left to navigate the daily hardships imposed by war—power cuts, destroyed homes, and the ever-present threat of attack.
As autumn deepens and the battle for Ukraine’s future shifts from trenches to conference tables, the world watches to see whether this new diplomatic momentum can finally bring an end to Europe’s deadliest conflict in decades.
