Overview
- UK, France and Germany met Volodymyr Zelensky in London, backing Ukraine while expressing skepticism about parts of a recent U.S. plan; President Donald Trump said he was disappointed Zelensky had not read it yet.
- Zelensky declared Ukraine has no legal or moral right to cede land, reiterating Kyiv’s refusal to accept territorial concessions.
- EU and NATO leaders reaffirmed support and discussed channeling frozen Russian assets to Kyiv, with officials hoping for progress by the EU summit on December 18–19.
- The March 10 Damascus–SDF agreement faces implementation delays: the SDF submitted a detailed military-integration proposal, and Syria’s defense ministry response was described as partly positive but incomplete.
- Liverpool excluded Mohamed Salah from the trip to Milan after his public criticism of coach Arne Slot, drawing rebukes from Thierry Henry and Steven Gerrard; Cairo venues reported fans staying away, and Saudi clubs are reportedly monitoring a possible January move.