Kremlin rules out EU as mediator in Ukraine talks, calls Europe a party to the conflict
Europe's bid for a seat at the Ukraine negotiating table is blocked from Moscow's side: the Kremlin says the EU cannot mediate because it is a party to the conflict, per The Moscow Times. EU foreign ministers have so far named no envoy of their own, per RFE/RL.
Whether Europe gets a seat at the table in any Ukraine peace process is now an open dispute between Brussels and Moscow. The Kremlin has ruled out the EU as a mediator. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Europe is effectively a party to the conflict because it backs Kyiv with weapons and funding, and therefore cannot claim a mediating role, as reported by The Moscow Times. Russian officials say only the United States currently acts as a mediator. Putin has offered Brussels an alternative it finds unacceptable: he named former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, or in his words someone who has not badmouthed Russia, as an EU representative he could work with, per Euronews. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas dismissed the idea, pointing to Schroeder's long business relationship with Russian energy companies, as reported by RFE/RL. The EU itself has not resolved the question. Foreign ministers meeting in Cyprus in late May named no envoy and agreed no mandate. Several member states argue the bloc cannot be a neutral mediator since it openly supports Ukraine. Coverage: The Moscow Times, RFE/RL, Euronews.