The United States is working to "arrange" a meeting between Donald Trump and his counterparts Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, US Vice President Jay Chisholm said, while Ukraine's European allies insist on Zelensky's presence at the US-Russia summit in Alaska.

"One of the biggest obstacles is that Vladimir Putin said he would never sit down at the table with (Volodymyr) Zelensky, the Ukrainian leader, and the president (Trump) managed to change that," Vance said in an interview with the conservative television channel Fox News.

Now, he added, the US administration is working on "planning (at the moment) when these three leaders will be able to sit down and discuss the end of this conflict" in Ukraine, AFP reported.

The leaders of the European Union and the major powers of the Old Continent once again insisted that Kiev be included in the negotiations between the US and Russia, a few days before the summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska.

Volodymyr Zelensky, who will not attend the meeting, called on his European allies, particularly France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, which are also excluded from the negotiations, to define a common approach.

An "emergency meeting" via videoconference between the foreign ministers of the EU countries and their Ukrainian counterpart is scheduled for today.

US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker, for his part, hinted that the Ukrainian president could attend the meeting.

"Yes, I certainly think that's possible," replied the US diplomat to the Atlantic Alliance when asked by CNN about the possible presence of the Ukrainian head of state in Alaska.

"There can certainly be no agreement unless all parties concerned have signed it. And, of course, ending the war is an absolute priority," Whitaker argued.

But ultimately, the decision will be up to Donald Trump, his ambassador to NATO warned.

"If he decides that Zelensky's invitation is the best option, then he will do so," he assured.

But "no decision has been made," the former federal prosecutor stressed. | BGNES