By Alvise Armellini and Gianluca Semeraro CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Pope Leo said Europe must play a central role in efforts to end the war in Ukraine, warning that any peace plan sidelining the continent is "not realistic.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is walking a tightrope between defending Ukrainian interests and showing President Donald Trump he is willing to compromise, even as Moscow shows no sign of budging on its demands.

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a peace plan that Washington hopes can end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine.

Imports dipped after the invasion, and Europe placed sanctions on a number of executives at Russian fertiliser companies. But it soon made clear that the companies themselves, and the commodities they sell,

Europeans find themselves stranded between hostile powers, Russia and the United States, with key decisions looming over the future of Ukraine.

Ukraine's Zelensky said he cannot cede land to Russia as he has no legal or moral right to do so. Follow Newsweek's live coverage.

In an interview with Politico, President Donald Trump again presses Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept the U.S. proposal that Ukraine cede territory to Russia, arguing that Moscow has the “upper hand” in its nearly 4-year-old invasion.