Germany's Wadephul urges Putin to enter Ukraine peace talks

DPAUpdated Fri, June 5, 2026 at 4:40 AM UTC1 min readAdd Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to engage in negotiations aimed at ending the war in Ukraine and said Europe must be involved in any eventual settlement.

Speaking alongside Mexican counterpart Roberto Velasco in Mexico City on Thursday, Wadephul said the conflict had reached a stage where efforts to secure a negotiated end to the conflict had become increasingly urgent.

His comments came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, amid stalled US-led mediation efforts, published an open letter offering direct peace talks with Putin.

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Wadephul said Germany and the European Union would have to be included in any negotiations, arguing that key issues such as security guarantees for Ukraine and Kiev's path towards EU membership could only be discussed with European participation.

He added that the format and timing of such involvement could be decided at any time.