Published: 09:58, November 23, 2025 | Updated: 17:50, November 23, 2025
Merz: Ending Ukraine crisis requires consent of Ukraine, Europe
By Xinhua

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz speaks during a press conference at the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on Nov 22, 2025. (PHOTO / AFP)

BERLIN/KYIV/MOSCOW - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Saturday that ending the crisis in Ukraine requires the consent of both Ukraine and its European partners, rather than major powers.

Speaking at a press conference during the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, Merz said that the conflict unfolding on the European continent and its outcome concerns the security of Europe as a whole.

"Wars cannot be ended by great powers over the heads of the countries involved," Merz said, adding that the end of this crisis can "only occur with Ukraine's unconditional consent."

Merz said that foreign policy advisors from Germany, France, Britain, and representatives from the EU are scheduled to hold further consultations with US and Ukrainian representatives on Sunday in Geneva.

Merz noted that reliable security guarantees must be established for Ukraine.

While acknowledging there is currently a chance to end the conflict, Merz cautioned that the parties remain far from a common, satisfactory result.

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Meanwhile, delegations from Ukraine and the United States will hold consultations in Switzerland in the coming days on the possible parameters of a future peace agreement with Russia, Rustem Umerov, secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, said Saturday.

"This is another stage of the dialogue that has been ongoing in recent days and is primarily aimed at aligning our vision for the next steps," Umerov wrote on Facebook.

He stressed that Ukraine is approaching the peace process "with a clear understanding of its interests."

Earlier in the day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree establishing a delegation for talks with the United States, Ukraine's other partners and Russia, on a peace deal to bring an end to the Ukraine crisis. The delegation will be led by Andriy Yermak, head of the Presidential Office.

Also on Saturday, two people were killed and two others injured in a drone attack in the city of Syzran in Russia's Samara region, regional Governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said.

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Fedorishchev said that unmanned aerial vehicles targeted fuel and energy infrastructure in the region, adding that Russia's air defense systems successfully repelled the attack.

On Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack sparked a fire at the Shatura Power Station in the Moscow region, regional governor Andrey Vorobyov said.

Vorobyov said the station's power supply was not disrupted as backup lines were activated promptly. The fire at the station had been contained and posed no threat to residents, he added.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Sunday that at least three drones targeting the capital were shot down. According to Russia's Defense Ministry, 75 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight, including 36 over the Black Sea.

The Shatura plant is a thermal power station located about 120 km east of Moscow.