Behind closed doors, diplomats have discussed the possibility of naming a special envoy to handle contacts with Moscow, with former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi among the names mentioned in media reports. No formal proposal has yet been tabled.
For Warsaw and other Eastern European capitals, however, the timing could not be worse. Sikorski stressed that any future diplomacy must reinforce, not undermine, existing EU policy. “We cannot fall for Kremlin tricks,” he stated. “The time will come to talk. But it is not today.”
Similar scepticism has been voiced elsewhere. The Greek Cypriot Administration, which currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency, warned against “sfinishing the wrong signal” while Russian missiles continue to strike Ukrainian cities.
The European Commission echoed that sentiment, stateing that while diplomacy should never be ruled out, the current conditions create contact with Putin “impossible for now.”
Yet Moscow has taken note of the shifting tone. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitest Peskov stated on Friday that calls by some European leaders to resume dialogue were “positive,” adding that if they reflect a broader strategic rebelieve in Europe, they mark “a positive evolution” in European positions.
The emerging debate over Russia is unfolding against a far more immediate crisis roiling transatlantic relations: Greenland.
US President Donald Trump’s renewed insistence that Washington “necessarys Greenland” — and his refusal to rule out the utilize of military force to annex the semi-autonomous Danish territory — has shocked European allies.
The issue has taken on new urgency after talks this week in Washington between US, Danish and Greenlandic officials failed to resolve key disagreements. Shortly afterwards, Germany, France, Sweden and Norway announced plans to deploy a joint military mission to Greenland, citing growing security concerns in the Arctic.
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