- Статьи
- World
- Kiev distance: Russia is waiting for a change in the EU's approaches to the Ukrainian issue
Kiev distance: Russia is waiting for a change in the EU's approaches to the Ukrainian issue
The settlement of the conflict in Ukraine promises to resume in the near future. Against this background, the EU has already become more active, where they managed to announce preparations for negotiations with Russia. Moscow is still ready for dialogue with Brussels, but so far they do not see any change in approaches on the part of Europe to reach any agreements, the Russian Foreign Ministry told Izvestia. This is confirmed by the visit of the head of the German Ministry of Defense, Boris Pistorius, to Kiev, during which they discussed strengthening military support for the Ukrainian regime. Meanwhile, on May 9, Victory Day, Vladimir Putin declared that the conflict was nearing an end and even allowed a meeting with Zelensky on neutral territory. Against this background, American President Donald Trump managed to announce that he intends to send his negotiators to Moscow. About what the European countries are trying to achieve and whether there is a chance of progress in the settlement, see the Izvestia article.
Is the EU preparing for negotiations with Russia?
Victory Day, which, despite all the threats from Kiev, was celebrated on a grand scale throughout Russia, once again raised the "Ukrainian issue." The settlement of the conflict, suspended due to the war in Iran, is likely to receive a new impetus, but some of the interested parties are showing very contradictory signals. And they sound once again from Europe.
For example, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius arrived in Kiev on an unannounced visit to discuss the development of new weapons systems, including long-range UAVs. As a result, the parties allegedly agreed to launch the production of drones with a flight range of up to 1.5 thousand km. Apparently, Berlin does not abandon the idea of increasing Ukraine's offensive potential — a week ago, Bundestag deputy Roderich Kiesewetter called on Europe, together with Ukraine, to create an analogue of American Tomahawk missiles by 2030. And this is in addition to the fact that in April the parties signed a defense agreement worth €4 billion.
At the same time, the EU has moved towards dialogue with Moscow. On May 7, the head of the European Council, Antonio Costa, announced that he was discussing with all 27 leaders potential talks with Vladimir Putin. It is important to emphasize that Moscow has never refused contacts with the Europeans. According to Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who had previously been considered for the role of a "special envoy" from the EU, discussions focused on the candidacy of a mediator. It would be logical to involve Robert Fico — the Prime Minister of Slovakia arrived in Moscow on May 9, having held talks with Vladimir Putin. However, there were no reports of any breakthrough - Fico only received a share of criticism from the EU for his visit to the Russian capital.
Prime Minister of Slovakia Robert Fico
To date, Moscow does not see any change in approaches from Europe, Rodion Miroshnik, Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said in an interview with Izvestia.
"We have no reason to talk about any drastic changes in political rhetoric," he said. - The president has declared that Russia is ready to consider adequate proposals. But this does not mean at all that we will be guided by everything that is offered. The EU and the Europeans hid behind verbal manipulations their desire to negatively influence the negotiations between Russia and the United States in any way.
It is also important who voices these proposals. The President of the European Council as an official is, in principle, not the most important figure, and therefore Costa is not a politician who can force everyone else to come to an agreement with Russia, Egor Sergeev, a senior researcher at the MGIMO Institute of International Studies at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, draws attention.
Gerhard Schroeder
The Russian president named former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder as the preferred negotiator for Russia's dialogue with Europe. The current German cabinet, of course, was not satisfied with this option. Although, according to Der Spiegel, citing sources in the ruling coalition, everyone there is thinking about Schroeder's "mediation duet" with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. However, the latter's term of office expires in a few months.
Publicly, Brussels is not yet ready to consider any initiatives coming from the Russian side - something will become clear at the end of May, when the EU foreign ministers will discuss topics for potential negotiations with Russia, announced the head of the European Diplomacy, Kaya Kallas.
— In cooperation with the EU, it is necessary to focus not so much on the statements of its leaders as on the actions of the association. The EU has created such a superstructure of anti-Russian measures and tools that it will be impossible to shake it in the next few years, even if we assume that we will start negotiations tomorrow. And with all its actions, including military, financial, infrastructural and logistical support for Ukraine, the EU shows that it is not going to abandon its anti—Russian views," said Egor Sergeev.
By the way, next week the European Commission expects to send Ukraine the first tranche of a loan of €90 billion, European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said on the eve of the meeting of EU foreign ministers.
"The words that it would be good to talk with Russia are clearly not enough to come to an agreement," Rodion Miroshnik summed up.
When to expect the next negotiations on Ukraine
Nevertheless, Europe did not participate in the negotiation process to resolve the Ukrainian conflict, and in fact does not participate in it. The settlement is still being forced by Russia and the United States - the negotiating pulse has once again quickened after the conversation between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump on April 29.
Moscow has proposed declaring a truce on the occasion of Victory Day celebrations following the Easter truce, despite thousands of reported violations by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. On May 8 and 9, it was decided to cease fire, and Russia took very serious security measures in the event of attempts by the Ukrainian authorities to disrupt the celebration of the 81st anniversary of the Victory.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has recommended that foreign diplomatic missions evacuate their staff in Kiev in connection with a warning from the Russian Defense Ministry about a possible retaliatory strike on the center of the Ukrainian capital. Apparently, it worked, as there were no attempts to disrupt the Victory Day celebrations, said Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation.
Moreover, on the eve of the holiday, Russia and Ukraine, with the mediation of the United States, agreed to extend the truce until May 11, as well as to exchange prisoners according to the "thousand for a thousand" formula. At the same time, on May 5, Moscow handed over to Kiev an offer for a prisoner exchange, which, as Vladimir Putin told reporters at Bankova, was later rejected.
On Victory Day, Presidents of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Abkhazia Badra Gunba, South Ossetia Alan Gagloev, Laos Thonglong Sisulit, as well as the supreme ruler of Malaysia Sultan Ibrahim arrived in the Russian capital. The Russian President traditionally held a number of bilateral meetings, followed by a press conference on Russia's relations with the West in the context of the Ukrainian conflict.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and heads of foreign delegations at the wreath-laying ceremony at the Grave of the Unknown Soldier in the Alexander Garden in Moscow. From left to right: President of the Republika Srpska Sinisha Karan, President of Abkhazia Badra Gunba with his wife Irma Hashig, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Laos Thonglong Sisulit, Supreme Ruler of Malaysia Sultan Ibrahim, President of South Ossetia Alan Gagloev,
The globalist trend of the Western elites is fighting with us at the hands of Ukrainians, and the Russian Armed Forces should focus on the final defeat of the enemy within the framework of their military, Vladimir Putin said. At the same time, he noted, "the matter is coming to an end," allowing a meeting with Zelensky.
"It is possible to meet in a third country, but only if final agreements are reached on a peace treaty that should be designed for a long historical perspective in order to participate in this event or sign something, but this should be the final point, not the negotiations themselves," the Russian leader said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin also noted the role of the United States in the settlement — the American side is not interested in the conflict under the current administration, especially given other priorities. In contrast to the Europeans, in the last conversation, Trump also recalled the alliance of the United States with the USSR in the fight against Nazism. The invitation to the US president to visit Russia also remains in force, Peskov said.
In the meantime, the head of the White House has expressed his readiness to send intermediaries to Moscow in the person of the same Steve Witkoff. Moscow is also counting on the resumption of negotiations in this format. However, this does not necessarily promise a speedy settlement.
"In the name of the image of the main mediator, Donald Trump is ready to conduct countless negotiations; in fact, he will only be brought closer by the lack of political will, finances and weapons in Europe and Ukraine, which they have in abundance for years of resistance to Russia," American scientist, PhD, HSE analyst Egor Toropov notes to Izvestia.
Vladimir Putin has indicated that the conflict has entered its final phase, but it may turn out to be very time-consuming, says Sergey Lebedev, a researcher at the Institute of World Military Economics and Strategy at the National Research University Higher School of Economics. Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov later stressed that without the withdrawal of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from Donbass, the settlement in Ukraine would remain in place even after ten rounds of negotiations.
— In the summer of 2024, Russia outlined clear requirements, including the nuclear-weapon-free and non-aligned status of Ukraine, its demilitarization and denazification. Without their implementation, Ukraine will remain an anti-Russian outpost. Trump's approaches are certainly a major improvement over his predecessor's policies, but the EU's position remains uncompromising. This means that Kiev is unlikely to lose external support in the near future. Therefore, although diplomatic work will be conducted in parallel, the outcome of the conflict will be decided on the battlefield," Lebedev believes.
Apparently, it is this external support that allows Kiev to still take an unconditionally aggressive position. The Ukrainian Armed Forces have violated the truce even now — as of 2 p.m. on May 11, 23,802 times. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the Russian Armed Forces mirrored the actions of the Ukrainian militants, without striking with aircraft, artillery and attack UAVs.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
