Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday that leaders from Europe and the United States agreed on five principles for the talks with Russia, the Ukrinform news agency reported.

Speaking at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin, Zelensky stressed that Ukraine must be directly involved in the peaceful settlement of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Everything that concerns Ukraine should be discussed exclusively with Ukraine, he said, calling for preparations for a trilateral dialogue involving Ukraine, Russia and the United States.

Zelensky underscored the need for a ceasefire and security guarantees for Ukraine. He also urged the imposition of stronger sanctions on Russia if it refuses to agree to a ceasefire.

According to Zelensky, who arrived in Berlin on Wednesday, he and Merz had a video meeting later in the same day with U.S. President Donald Trump, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte, among others.

Trump is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug.15 in the U.S. state of Alaska.

Merz, for his part, said that he and other European participants reiterated to Trump the five principles.

Meanwhile, other participants of the meeting also expressed their positions.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump had indicated his intention to achieve a ceasefire at the upcoming meeting with the Russian side, and that the U.S. side also sought to hold trilateral talks involving the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine in the future.

All parties of the meeting agreed that Ukraine's territorial issues must be negotiated with the Ukrainian side.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stressed that international borders must never be altered by force, that Ukraine must receive security guarantees, and that any decision concerning Ukraine's future must involve Ukraine's participation.

Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

Leaders from Europe, U.S. agree on principles for talks with Russia: Zelensky

A Japanese lawmaker has raised concerns over Japan's push to expand its military and its nuclear policy.

Responding to some politicians' dangerous tendency towards possessing nuclear weapons, Takara Sachika, a member of Japan's House of Councilors, said that Japan's push to strengthen its military, combined with what she called a misguided nuclear policy, not only heightens regional tensions but also directly threatens regional security.

"I think this is completely unacceptable. Japan is a country that has suffered atomic bombings and is one of the nations most aware of the threat posed by nuclear weapons. Yet such a country is openly discussing the issue of possessing nuclear weapons and even attempting to revise the principle of not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons, one of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles. This is an extremely serious problem," Takara said.

Takara said the Japanese government's tendency to expand its military capabilities is completely contrary to the Constitution.

"From the perspective of Japan's Constitution, Japan should never have adopted a policy of ensuring security by strengthening military capabilities. Yet today, enormous effort is being poured into military expansion, and that in itself is a serious problem," said the lawmaker.

At a Diet meeting in early November 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said that what she described as the Chinese central authorities' "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, and suggested the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait, drawing strong criticism worldwide.

Takara urged Takaichi to retract her erroneous remarks as soon as possible.

"I think there is a very big problem with making such remarks that provoke other countries. It is necessary to thoroughly examine the facts as soon as possible and withdraw the relevant remarks," she said.

Japanese lawmaker criticizes nuclear weapons remarks as threat to regional security