European leaders and Zelensky in London searching for ’new phase’ to peace talks

Day 1,383.

Today, after a weekend marked by continued talks in Florida between the Ukrainian and American delegations and President Donald Trump’s comments blaming Zelensky for stalling negotiations, the Ukrainian president meets British PM Keir Starmer, French President Macron and German Chancellor Merz in London today. The talks, which finished as we were recording this episode, opened with Germany’s ‘scepticism’ of US peace proposals and France’s assurance that ‘Europe had a lot of cards in its hands.’ Meanwhile, Russia targets a dam near Kharkiv which supplies water to Ukraine's second biggest city. Finally, we discuss the US’s National Security Strategy and the current state of Ukraine’s air defence.

Contributors

Adélie Pojzman-Pontay (Journalist and Producer). @adeliepjz on X.

Dominic Nicholls (Associate Editor of Defence). @DomNicholls on X.

With thanks to Michael Bohnert (RAND). @mbohnert on X.

SIGN UP TO THE ‘UKRAINE: THE LATEST’ WEEKLY NEWSLETTER:

http://telegraph.co.uk/ukrainenewsletter

Each week, Dom Nicholls and Francis Dearnley answer your questions, provide recommended reading, and give exclusive analysis and behind-the-scenes insights – plus maps of the frontlines and diagrams of weapons to complement our daily reporting. It’s free for everyone, including non-subscribers.

CONTENT REFERENCED:

Zelenskiy Says No Accord Yet on Ukraine’s East in US Talks, Bloomberg News

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-12-08/zelenskiy-says-no-accord-so-far-on-eastern-ukraine-in-us-talks

Trump: Zelensky hasn’t even read my peace plan, The Telegraph

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/12/08/ukraine-russia-war-latest-starmer-zelensky-trump-putin/

Kremlin: Trump’s new defence strategy ‘consistent’ with Russian vision, The Telegraph

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/12/07/donald-trump-defence-strategy-russia-dmitry-peskov-kremlin/

France shielding €18bn Russian asset pot from EU ‘reparations loan’ push, Financial times

https://www.ft.com/content/fe304bb8-d928-4b9b-8162-2000301be937

LISTEN TO THIS PODCAST IN NEW LANGUAGES:

The Telegraph has launched translated versions of Ukraine: The Latest in Ukrainian and Russian, making its reporting accessible to audiences on both sides of the battle lines and across the wider region, including Central Asia and the Caucasus. Just search Україна: Останні Новини (Ukr) and Украина: Последние Новости (Ru) on your on your preferred podcast app to find them. Listen here: https://linktr.ee/ukrainethelatest

Subscribe: telegraph.co.uk/ukrainethelatest

Email: ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.