Zelenskyy pushes for US-hosted Putin meeting at G7 as Lukashenko calls for compromise and military victory eludes both sides

Arrival at the G7

Zelenskyy was welcomed by French President Emmanuel Macron in Évian on Tuesday morning ahead of the first working session dedicated to Ukraine. The summit comes after four-plus years of war and repeated failed mediation attempts. Overnight, a Russian drone strike set fire to Kyiv’s UNESCO-listed Kyiv Pechersk Lavra cathedral – damage Zelenskyy called “targeted.”

We have offered Putin to meet anywhere, where real decisions on ending the war could be made. He does not want it.

A US venue after the Kremlin’s no

Zelenskyy disclosed that he and Donald Trump had discussed organising a direct Putin meeting in the United States. The offer followed Moscow’s refusal to join the G7 table in Évian, a format Paris had briefly revived. “Yesterday we spoke with President Trump about organising such a meeting in the USA,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted on X. He argued it would be “in a format that would make it much harder for Putin to refuse.”

Trump, who held separate Sunday calls with both leaders, called the conversations “very good” and said “they are both open” to something. French officials had raised the prospect of a Putin visit to Évian, recalling the 2003 G8 summit there, but the Kremlin dismissed the idea.

Lukashenko’s unexpected overture

In an interview aired Monday by Al Arabiya, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko – a close Putin ally – said Russia and Ukraine must compromise because “a military victory is unrealistic for both sides.” He acknowledged troop shortages hampering both armies and insisted Ukraine had “nothing to fear” from Belarus, despite Minsk having hosted Russian forces and nuclear weapons.

A military victory is unrealistic for both sides.

Lukashenko also offered a personal apology to Zelenskyy for possibly causing offence, while warning Kyiv not to provoke Belarus. The gesture followed a warning from Ukraine’s drone forces commander, Robert Brovdi, who said 500 potential targets inside Belarus had been identified. Russian deputy foreign minister Michail Galusin last week said Moscow and Minsk stood ready to use “all available means” to protect their security.

Merz sees a diplomatic opening

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz struck a cautiously optimistic note before departing for the summit. “For the first time, a window for diplomacy may slowly be opening,” he said, citing a shift in momentum “clearly in Ukraine’s favour.” Merz credited German and European support for putting Kyiv “in a new position of strength” and said Russia “cannot win militarily; moreover its economy is battered.”

For the first time, a window for diplomacy may slowly be opening.

Pressing for air defence and sanctions

Zelenskyy told reporters he would use the G7 platform to lobby for additional air-defence systems and to discuss with Trump and European leaders how to raise pressure on Moscow. The summit’s mood was lifted by the recent Iran framework agreement; Trump said “many great things” would flow from it. Meanwhile, the Kremlin, via the Meduza outlet, signalled Putin saw no point in a meeting with Zelenskyy absent a peace deal.