BERLIN, November 21. /TASS/. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has held a joint telephone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Vladimir Zelensky to discuss the latest US peace initiative, official representative of the German government Stefan Kornelius said.

"They [Merz, Macron and Starmer] assured Ukraine of their continued and full support on the path to a long-term and just peace," Cornelius told reporters. All four, according to him, "welcomed the efforts of the United States to end the war in Ukraine."

"They agreed to continue to pursue the goal of protecting vital European and Ukrainian interests in the long term. This means, in part, that the line of contact is the starting point for reaching mutual understanding and that the Ukrainian armed forces must remain capable of effectively defending Ukraine's sovereignty," Cornelius said. "They were unanimous in their opinion that any agreement that affects European states, the EU and NATO requires the approval of the European partners, that is, consensus among the allies."