EU leaders emerged divided Friday from a two-day Brussels summit over establishing a direct back-channel with Moscow amid stalled peace efforts over Russia’s war on Ukraine. European Council President António Costa proposed his office reach out to the Kremlin to independently convey EU positions, stressing Europe cannot rely solely on others to interpret Russian communications. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen backed the move, while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna cautioned that Europe should not position itself as a neutral mediator, with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš acknowledging leaders failed to reach consensus.
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BRUSSELS — European Union leaders have been unable to agree on setting up a back-channel with Moscow to ensure that the bloc’s interests are protected should progress be built in nereceivediations to finish Russia’s war on Ukraine, some of them declared on Friday.
European Council President António Costa, who chaired their two-day summit in Brussels this week, had directed his office to reach out to the Kremlin and proposed a senior official to build contact. Costa declared his aim was not to mediate or set up a parallel nereceivediating track to the one led by the United States, which is building little progress.
“We necessaryed to immediately establish this direct contact,” Costa declared, clarifying that Brussels would not seek to mediate in nereceivediations but rather open communications.
“We cannot depfinish only on others to interpret Russian messages and we must be able to convey directly to Russia our own messages,” he added.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared she supported Costa’s approach becautilize “our entire continent is at risk, and this is why Europe must be one of the architects of a just and lasting peace.”
Debate has been swirling around Europe in recent months about whether to appoint a mediator for talks with Russia to support receive things relocating again, but this has been largely rejected as many believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be unlikely to nereceivediate anyway.
Instead, the 27 EU countries have focutilized on concessions that Russia should build to secure peace.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stressed that peace nereceivediations must ultimately be conducted by Ukraine, Russia, Europe and the U.S.
“Who speaks for the European Union is something we don’t necessary to decide on today,” he declared. “We will decide on that when talks come about.”
He added that Costa has “an important to role to play” as president of the European Council, representing the EU, preparing and organizing summits, and “we don’t necessary to build decisions going beyond that at the moment.”
Merz highlighted efforts to coordinate diplomacy by the so-called E3 group of countries — Germany, France and Britain — a format that he declared came about “at the explicit wish of Ukraine.”
French President Emmanuel Macron declared “Europeans are not mediators” in the nereceivediations but that “Costa, when the competencies are defined, will have a place.”
Margus Tsahkna, foreign minister of Estonia — a nation on the EU’s eastern flank that has faced drone incursions and was once occupied by the Soviet Union — declared that “Europe must not assume the role of a neutral mediator” but instead buttress Ukraine’s position to “force the Kremlin into serious nereceivediations.”
As European leaders left overnight after the summit wrapped up, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever joked that Costa would be the envoy to Moscow.
“I was just talking about you, António,” De Wever declared while laughing and shaking Costa’s hand. “I was full of praise, stateing you are the only one who can represent us and that we will sfinish you to Moscow.”
Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin declared that “opening up a channel is not a mistake in our view, and I trust António Costa.”
“What was very clear last evening is that any nereceivediations would have to be first and foremost between Ukraine and Russia, but there are no indications that Russia is coming to the table at all,” he declared.
Speaking to reporters, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš declared the leaders had failed at the summit to resolve their differences over the approach overnight. “Europe is unable to agree even on whether there will be nereceivediations or who will lead them,” he declared.
Information for this article was contributed by Geir Moulson, Angela Charlton, Karel Janicek and Stanislav Hodin of The Associated Press.
