Germany's Merz: Russia, US cannot settle Ukraine war without Kyiv, Europe

SINGAPORE, Oct 27 (Reuters) - German ‌Chancellor Friedrich ​Merz ​said on Tuesday that attempts by the US and Russia to end the war in ‌Ukraine "can never find solutions without Ukraine" and said any ⁠talks must also include European countries.

Merz was speaking at the Yusof ‌Ishak Institute in Singapore ‌as he described diplomatic efforts to build a negotiating format with Moscow. He said the end of the ​war depended "only on one person" and framed continued backing for Kyiv as a defence of Europe's political order.

• ⁠He said "as long as he (Putin) does not want to end the war, we ​will support Ukraine" and that Europe was not just defending Ukraine's territorial integrity but also "the entire ​political order of the European ‌continent"

• Merz said Russia, Ukraine, the United States and European countries should be at the ⁠negotiating table and warned against a scenario where "Russia, perhaps China and the United States of America" end the war without Ukraine

• ⁠Merz said Germany and other European countries were trying to establish ​a format to speak with the Russian government and that Norway and Finland were playing what he called "a very constructive role" in ‌that effort

• The leaders of Finland and Norway called Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to ‌urge him to end the war in Ukraine, breaking ⁠with a longstanding practice ‌among Western European leaders ​of shunning direct contact with the Kremlin

(Reporting by Andreas Rinke, writing by Kirsti KnolleEditing by Ludwig ‌Burger)

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