
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has declared that there should be "no dictated peace" in Ukraine and that Kiev and its European allies must be included in any agreement to end the war.
"We have a clear course of action: No decisions on Ukraine and Europe without Ukrainians and without Europeans," Merz said together with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Berlin, shortly after speaking by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"No peace dictated over the heads of Ukrainians. No weakening or disintegration of the European Union and NATO," he added.
Merz, who leads the German government after a long period of CDU dominance in opposition, has sought to reaffirm Berlin's role as a central actor in the European security architecture.
The phone call with Zelensky was interpreted as a signal of continued German support for Kiev and a counterweight to international voices calling for swift negotiations, even if they would favor Moscow.