Confusion over who could speak at peace talks must be clarified by the end of November, the former actor has demanded
Vladimir Zelensky has demanded that a Western European representative be approved to join the peace talks initiated by the US, Russia and Ukraine by the end of November.
Speaking in Copenhagen as trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi closed with a confirmation that Western Europe has effectively been sidelined from the discussions, Zelensky insisted that “we need to choose who will represent Europe in the negotiations. This would be better, as they would receive a mandate for the talks – a mandate from all of Europe.”
The decision must be made “no later than the end of November” or during the meeting of Kiev’s Western European backers in Berlin on the 19th of the month.
Speaking following the Abu Dhabi trilaterals, US envoy Jared Kushner pointed out that “if Europe could identify one person to speak on their behalf, that would be a bigger achievement than getting the Russians to include them in the negotiation.”
The Western European countries have refused to negotiate with Moscow practically since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. Recent attempts to reopen a dialogue with them have only exposed divisions.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni complained last week that the EU was “all over the place” on the issue, undermining its own credibility.
Last month, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store came under fire from fellow EU leaders for breaking ranks and unilaterally contacting Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moscow welcomed the engagement, despite it not leading to any breakthroughs.
Moscow has said repeatedly that Europe has lost its credibility because it continues to supply weapons and funds to Ukraine and discusses the need to deliver a strategic defeat to Russia. It also rejected calls for an unconditional ceasefire coming from Brussels, arguing that they are only set up to win time for Kiev to reconstitute its forces.
Stubb, Store, Meloni as well as Czech President Petr Pavel and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who has already rejected the job, have all been mentioned by the media as possible candidates to become the sole European representatives in the negotiations.
When asked by journalists after the discussions in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday about when the Europeans could become full-fledged participants of the peace talks, Russia’s top negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, replied that it will only happen “when they grow a conscience.”
