International Press Review // Switzerland ready to host meeting to discuss ending Russian-Ukrainian war
The international press describes the preparations for talks between US President-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss ending the Russian-Ukrainian war. The pre-election situation in Germany and the effects of Trump's territorial claims on the Danish island of Greenland are among other topics covered by the media.
Switzerland is ready to host a meeting. This was announced by the head of Switzerland's foreign affairs service, Nicolas Bidault, in an interview with Le Temps. According to him, the authorities in Bern do not intend to initiate peace negotiations but are ready to support any diplomatic efforts to start negotiations. Le Temps recalls that Trump announced that his team is working on preparing a meeting with Putin after his inauguration on January 20. Putin is open to negotiations, but he will insist on the condition that Ukraine never joins NATO and he will demand that four regions in eastern and southern Ukraine be transferred to Russian control, even though the Russian army does not fully control them, Le Temps concludes.
US President-elect Donald Trump will soon call Russian President Vladimir Putin to prepare a meeting to solve the Russian-Ukrainian war. This was stated by the future national security adviser of the American leader, Michael Waltz, in an interview with ABC News. Waltz said that preparations for a meeting between Trump and Putin "are already underway" and could take place in the coming months or even weeks. Asked whether Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will participate in the talks, Michael Waltz said that their format is still being refined. The Kremlin will not agree to completely withdraw its troops from Ukraine, and Western leaders understand that the solution must be diplomatic, Michael Waltz emphasized in an interview with ABC News. According to him, Kiev must stop the offensive of the Russian army and consolidate its position before negotiations, and to do this, it must reduce the mobilization age from 25 to 18 years, to replenish the ranks of the army.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to visit Ukraine in the "coming weeks" to discuss the possibility of deploying an international peacekeeping force in case a ceasefire agreement is reached. The information is revealed by Bloomberg, citing diplomatic sources in London. According to them, Starmer held discussions on the issue with French President Emmanuel Macron, both reaffirming their “unwavering support” for Ukraine and the need to ensure Kiev’s strong position in 2025. A dead North Korean soldier’s diary reveals horrific battlefield tactics in the Russo-Ukrainian war, writes The Wall Street Journal. The crude diagram, sketched in blue ink, details how North Korean soldiers deployed to support Russia in the war in Ukraine should respond to the approach of a Ukrainian drone, reads the publication. One soldier – called a “decoy” – is supposed to stand still to attract the drone, so that a pair of comrades can try to shoot it down. The terrifying tactics were revealed in a diary taken from a North Korean soldier killed on December 21, with passages containing mundane details of life on the front, descriptions of combat tactics and expressions of love for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to excerpts recently released by Ukraine’s special operations forces. Independent experts say the diary entries appear authentic, with calligraphy, word choice and expressions of ideological fervor, all characteristic of North Korea, the WSJ reports.
The far-right Alternative for Germany party adopted an election manifesto at a congress, but did not condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Tagesschau reports. According to the publication, most delegates rejected the proposal to include the point in the manifesto. The conference was marked by protests attended by up to 12,000 people and took place before early parliamentary elections in February, the Tagesschau reports. The "Alternative for Germany" is expected to win 20 percent of the seats, coming in second place behind the Christian Democrats, but it has no chance of forming a governing coalition because none of the political parties wants to ally with the far right, explains Tagesschau.
The German Social Democrats (SPD) on Saturday confirmed Chancellor Olaf Scholz as the party's main candidate in the early parliamentary elections in February, the German news agency DPA reports. Scholz was nominated as a candidate for the position of chancellor by the party leadership in late November after a stormy debate. The early vote was called following the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's tripartite coalition, also in November.
Sources of the American publication Axios say that the Danish authorities have sent confidential messages to Donald Trump's team regarding the possibility of negotiations to strengthen the security of the Danish island of Greenland, including a proposal to increase the US military contingent on the island. The Danish government wants to avoid public disputes over the future of Greenland and convince Trump that security can be ensured without annexing the island to the US, the same publication writes. Despite this, Denmark emphasizes that the island is not for sale, but is open to other demands from Washington. Greenland is important to US and NATO defense, hosting a key military base for the ballistic missile detection system. In addition, interest in the island is heightened by its valuable natural resources, including gold, diamonds and rare metals, which could counter China's dominance in the global market, Axios concludes.
