German Chancellor Angela Merkel will host the leaders of France, Russia, and Ukraine in Berlin on Oct. 19 in a bid to push forward the patchily implemented peace plan for eastern Ukraine that the four countries negotiated in early 2015.
The evening meeting in Berlin will represent Russian President Vladimir Putin’s first visit to the German capital since the Ukraine crisis erupted and the first meeting of the four leaders in more than a year. While officials from the four countries have speculated for weeks that the meeting might take place, Ms. Merkel’s spokesman only officially announced the plans on Oct. 18 amid last-minute wrangling over whether the timing was right.
