Moscow is waiting for the EU to choose a lead negotiator for renewed dialogue
Russia is setting a “trap” for the EU by encouraging member states to decide who should represent the bloc in direct talks with Moscow, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has claimed.
EU officials have for months complained that US-Russian negotiations on the Ukraine conflict have left Europeans sidelined. However, the 27-member bloc has still failed to agree on who could speak for its interests in possible direct negotiations with Moscow, which were cut off after the escalation of the conflict in 2022.
“I find that it is a trap that Russia wants us to walk into, that we discuss who talks to them, and they are already picking who is suitable and who is not,” Kallas told reporters on Thursday ahead of an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Cyprus.
EU leaders previously rebuked Russian President Vladimir Putin for saying he would personally find talks with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder pleasing. Putin’s remark was interpreted in the West as an attempt by Moscow to dictate the EU’s diplomatic choices. In the same comments, however, Putin stressed that Russia would be willing to speak with whomever Brussels appoints, provided that person does not have a record of openly anti-Russian rhetoric.
Kallas, who has built a reputation as a Russia hawk and has publicly opposed any negotiations with Putin, declined to say whether she wants the role herself, noting only that her “job description [is] in the treaties.” The European External Action Service, which she leads, has often been overshadowed by the office of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on several key foreign-policy issues.
The EU’s approach to Russia should be “a team effort,” Kallas said. Successful negotiations require that “you have good cops, you have bad cops, you have strategy on how you go to the table,” she added.
Kallas also vowed to keep pushing for restrictions on the Russian military to be included in any Ukraine peace deal. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov refused to address the demand, saying he does not “comment on idiotic statements.”
European Council President Antonio Costa argued as early as February 2025 that the EU should talk to Russia after US President Donald Trump abandoned the policy of isolating Moscow. The debate over who should serve as the bloc’s single negotiator has remained deadlocked, with media reports naming potential candidates including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, and others.
Commenting on Kallas’ remarks, Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yury Ushakov said Moscow could do nothing to help the EU overcome its indecision.
