Morning opening: Waiting for the call
Jakub Krupa
US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin will speak on the phone today discussing the next step in Trump’s plans for bringing about a ceasefire in Ukraine.
On Sunday, Trump said that negotiators had already talked about “dividing up certain assets”, including power stations. The legal status of Russia-occupied territories is also believed to be on the table.
Much to Europe’s frustration, it once again finds itself not at the table and having to rely on readouts from Washington or Moscow containing only what they choose to disclose.
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha sought to strike an upbeat tone this morning, telling reporters in India that “with leadership of president Trump, we could achieve long-lasting, just peace.” But he also repeated some of Kyiv’s red lines, including its refusal to recognise any of the occupied territories as Russian.
For now, Europe continues its work on a security arrangement that could support a ceasefire or a peace deal, if one is agreed. On Thursday and Friday, European leaders will meet again for the European Council in Brussels, and army chiefs will continue their coordinations in London.
But today’s Trump-Putin phone call will define the future of the talks.
We will bring you all the updates throughout the day.
It’s Tuesday, 18 March 2025, and this is Europe live. It’s Jakub Krupa here.
Good morning.
Key events
Germany set to vote on Merz’s plans to unlock record level of state borrowing
Kate Connolly
Berlin correspondent
Germany’s likely next chancellor is to face a key vote on plans to unlock a record level of state borrowing, which he argues is necessary to boost the country’s military spending and inject growth into its ailing economy.
Friedrich Merz intends to release a €500bn infrastructure fund and relax debt rules – currently protected by the constitution – via the outgoing parliament, where parties in favour of the proposals – his conservatives, the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens – have the necessary two-thirds majority.
Merz needs the support of almost all the MPs who have signalled their willingness to back the scheme as he also reckons with some dissenters, including a former CDU general secretary who Merz sacked in 2023.
Financial markets have followed the developments closely, reacting positively to the news last week that Merz had secured the Greens’ support. Experts have said the fiscal injection has the power to lift Germany’s economic fortunes after two years of negative growth, but some have warned that they must be accompanied by robust reform proposals.
Jakub Krupa
Elsewhere, we will also be monitoring the situation in Germany today, where the Bundestag will vote on a historic package of spending reforms proposed by chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz.
The sitting starts very soon, at 10am (9am GMT), with votes expected around 2pm (1pm GMT).
So let’s hear from our Berlin correspondent on the significance of the vote…
Morning opening: Waiting for the call
Jakub Krupa
US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin will speak on the phone today discussing the next step in Trump’s plans for bringing about a ceasefire in Ukraine.
On Sunday, Trump said that negotiators had already talked about “dividing up certain assets”, including power stations. The legal status of Russia-occupied territories is also believed to be on the table.
Much to Europe’s frustration, it once again finds itself not at the table and having to rely on readouts from Washington or Moscow containing only what they choose to disclose.
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha sought to strike an upbeat tone this morning, telling reporters in India that “with leadership of president Trump, we could achieve long-lasting, just peace.” But he also repeated some of Kyiv’s red lines, including its refusal to recognise any of the occupied territories as Russian.
For now, Europe continues its work on a security arrangement that could support a ceasefire or a peace deal, if one is agreed. On Thursday and Friday, European leaders will meet again for the European Council in Brussels, and army chiefs will continue their coordinations in London.
But today’s Trump-Putin phone call will define the future of the talks.
We will bring you all the updates throughout the day.
It’s Tuesday, 18 March 2025, and this is Europe live. It’s Jakub Krupa here.
Good morning.