Ukrainian medics of Da Vinci Wolves Battalion treat their injured comrades at a stabilisation point on Pokrovsk direction, Ukraine, Sunday. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — European nations have rallied behind Ukraine, saying peace in the war-torn nation can’t be resolved without Kyiv, ahead of an upcoming meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska.

Trump said next Friday’s meeting with his Russian counterpart on U.S. soil would focus on ending the war, now in its fourth year.

In response, Zelenskyy thanked European allies in a post on X, writing Sunday: “The end of the war must be fair, and I am grateful to everyone who stands with Ukraine and our people.”

Saturday’s statement by top European leaders came after the White House confirmed the U.S president was willing to grant Putin the one-on-one meeting Russia has long pushed for, and suggestions from Trump that a peace deal could include “some swapping of territories.” That raised fears that Kyiv may be pressured into giving up land or accepting other curbs on its sovereignty.

A White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they aren’t allowed to speak publicly, told The Associated Press that Trump remained open to a trilateral summit with both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, but for now, he will have a bilateral meeting requested by Putin.

In an interview with Fox News taped on Thursday but aired on Sunday, U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Trump had got Putin to agree to meet with Zelenskyy and it was now only a matter of scheduling before a meeting would take place. The Kremlin has previously said that Putin and Zelenskyy should meet only when an agreement negotiated by their delegations is close. A request to the White House for clarification has not immediately been answered.

Trump previously said he would meet with Putin regardless of whether the Russian leader agreed to meet with Zelenskyy.

The Trump-Putin meeting may prove pivotal in a war that began when Russia invaded its western neighbor and has led to tens of thousands of deaths, although there’s no guarantee it will stop the fighting since Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on their conditions for peace.

Saturday’s statement, signed by the president of the European Union and leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland and the UK, stressed the need for a “just and lasting peace” for Kyiv, including “robust and credible” security guarantees.

“Ukraine has the freedom of choice over its own destiny. Meaningful negotiations can only take place in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities,” the statement said.

“The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine. We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force,” the Europeans added.

The European statement follows a meeting between Vance and top European and Ukrainian officials at the British Foreign Secretary’s weekend residence to discuss how to end the war.

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that a good deal would mean preventing an emboldened Russia, and aggressors elsewhere, from trying to once again redraw borders by force.

A Trump ally and Russia hawk, Graham nevertheless said that “you can’t end a war without talking.”

“I do hope that Zelenskyy can be part of the process. I have every confidence in the world that (President Trump) is going to go to meet Putin from a position of strength, that he’s going to look out for Europe and Ukrainian needs to end this war honorably,” he said.

A monthlong U.S.-led push to achieve a truce in Ukraine has so far proved fruitless, with Kyiv agreeing in principle while the Kremlin has held out for terms more to its liking.