In brief: European Council President António Costa has agreed to discuss who should represent the EU in negotiations on Russia’s war against Ukraine. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wants leaders to settle the question in December, warning that Rome could be asked to honor commitments it never approved.
European Council President António Costa has agreed to put a question raised by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni before EU leaders next week in Dublin: Who can speak for the bloc in Ukraine peace talks, and what can they agree to on its behalf?
In a reply seen by European Pravda, Costa backed Meloni’s call for a common European position. He said the EU’s institutions should represent the bloc in line with the responsibilities set out in its treaties.
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“The participation of the European Union must be organized in such a way that it can convey a clear and united message, defend its interests and support Ukraine,” Costa wrote, according to the outlet.
The timing gives the question some urgency. By the time EU leaders meet on Nov. 13, Ukrainian and Russian officials are expected to have completed two days of US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi. The agenda there already includes a question European governments will have to reckon with: what security arrangements would protect Ukraine after the fighting ends?
Meloni wants leaders to agree on a mandate by December
In her Nov. 5 letter to Costa, Meloni warned that European officials pursuing separate diplomatic initiatives risked giving Kyiv, Moscow and Washington conflicting signals about what the EU was prepared to do. She said the appearance of division benefited those who wanted the war to continue.
For Italy, the concern was practical. A negotiator could make a commitment in Europe’s name and later ask Rome to help fulfill it. Meloni said Italy would reject any such commitment made without an agreed EU mandate. She also ruled out seeking the negotiating role for herself or a separate seat for Italy.
Meloni Urges Single EU Voice in Ukraine Talks, Warns of ‘Irrelevance’
Meloni proposed using the informal Dublin meeting to open the discussion, then consulting Britain, Norway and other European allies before EU leaders take a formal decision at their December summit. Costa’s reply commits him to the Dublin discussion. The choice of a representative and the scope of that person’s authority remain open.
Kyiv has already taken its proposals to Washington
The preparations for Abu Dhabi show how European governments are involved in the diplomacy even as they debate who speaks for the bloc. When US envoy Steve Witkoff announced the Nov. 10–11 talks, he named Ukraine, Russia and the United States as participants. He set out a separate role for France, Germany, Britain, the EU and NATO in Brussels, where consultations would cover security guarantees for Ukraine and support for reconstruction.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine presented its negotiating proposals to Washington during a 90-minute call with Witkoff and Jared Kushner on Nov. 4. Alongside the question of postwar guarantees, Zelensky raised an immediate need: more Patriot interceptors to protect Ukrainian cities from Russian strikes heading into winter.
That same day, Zelensky said, his team discussed reconstruction in Brussels with EU officials, individual European governments, NATO and the World Bank. When leaders meet in Dublin, the question Meloni has put before them is who has the authority to turn those discussions into commitments all EU members can stand behind.
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