British officials have urged EU leaders to stop"useless comments" about the upcoming Trump-Putin talks.

Officials are increasingly concerned by public comments about the future of Ukraine made by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaia Kallas.

They fear that making public demands on the US president could backfire and result in him completely excluding Europe from the negotiations.

Downing Street officials have long argued privately that the best way to influence Trump is to use access and influence behind closed doors, rather than publicly calling on him to take a position.

One British official told the newspaper that there were concerns about"unhelpful comments" coming from European leaders about the Trump-Putin talks.

The source said:"Unlike our European counterparts, we are not publicly making any demands on the Americans."