European leaders ‘want to see deal done’ on Ukraine, says Trump ahead of Zelensky call

• European leaders are due to hold talks with Ukraine’s Zelensky ahead of a Trump-Putin summit on Friday – here’s what to expect

• Trump says the European leaders “want to see a deal done” – but they are expected to reiterate that no decisions should be taken without Ukraine when the US and Russian presidents meet in Alaska

• Zelensky, who is expected to hold a call with Trump shortly, says Russia should be put under pressure “for the sake of a just peace”

• Meanwhile, Moscow has reiterated its conditions for peace – and they’re demands which neither Kyiv nor Europe see as viable, our Europe reporter Laura Gozzi writes

• Trump said last week there would be “some swapping of territories to the betterment of both” Russia and Ukraine – sparking concern in Kyiv and across Europe

• On the ground: Russia currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory – here’s how the conflict has changed in maps

Ahead of this afternoon’s meeting between leaders in Europe, Donald Trump’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has been speaking about the president’s meeting with Putin this weekend.

He tells Bloomsberg TV that “everyone has been frustrated with Putin”, but suggests that now “it looks like he may be ready to negotiate”.

“The president is the best at creating leverage for himself, and he will make it clear to president Putin that all options are on the table,” he explains.

But, Bessent warns that if talks don’t go as planned, “then sanctions or secondary tariffs could go up”.

And he reiterates that Europe needs to be willing to also put secondary sanctions on Russia.

“We need the Europeans to come in and help create more leverage,” he explains.

As we focus on the diplomatic efforts to resolve the war, there have been some significant developments on the front line in Ukraine.

According to Ukrainian officials, Russian forces have advanced at least 10km (six miles) around the Pokrovsk area in a few days, after weeks of incremental gains along the front line.

Reconnaissance and sabotage groups of Russian troops have been reported by the Ukrainian military as having entered small settlements around Dobropillya (20km north-west of Pokrovsk), analysis from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank says.

Operating in small, unarmoured teams they have been infiltrating areas behind Ukrainian defensive positions, taking shelter and awaiting reinforcements to carry out attacks. But they have not yet been able to deploy these reinforcements to exploit the gains, according to ISW reports.

At this point in the war, the town of Pokrovsk is considered one of the most dangerous places on the front line.

Ukrainian intelligence also indicates that North Korea recently deployed 11,000 soldiers to Russia to help the war effort, the ISW says.

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