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Countries of conflict: Europe is again trying to get involved in negotiations on Ukraine
After long discussions, European countries finally decided to establish direct contacts with the Russian Federation. During the UN General Assembly in New York, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with German Foreign Minister Johann Vadefull. However, the position of the Europeans, as expected, does not change: concessions are still being demanded from Moscow. The German Embassy told "Izvestia" that Europe should sit at the negotiating table on the Ukrainian settlement. The Vatican has also stepped up its efforts: Special Envoy Cardinal Matteo Zuppi will visit Moscow on September 28-30. Meanwhile, the United States hopes to reach an agreement on Ukraine before winter. Vladimir Putin noted that peace proposals are "on the table," but the Russian Federation will think again after Kiev's attacks during the State Duma elections.
Europe is trying to get involved in the negotiations
The first meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia and Germany since 2022 took place on September 26 at the initiative of the German side during the High-level Week of the UN General Assembly. However, it cannot be called a turning point. After the talks, Sergey Lavrov said that he had not learned anything new from the speech of German Foreign Minister Johann Vadefuhl.: he completely repeated Berlin's permanent position.
"The implication was that I [the German Foreign Minister] came, I condescended to contact you, but now, because I made such a gesture of goodwill, let's make some concessions on the Ukrainian front," the Russian minister commented.
According to him, Europe is desperately trying to get involved in the negotiation process on Ukraine, encouraged by the United States. European politicians have been making such statements lately. So, even the odious head of the European diplomacy, Kaya Kallas, promised to "talk with Russia if such an opportunity arises." And some European countries periodically suggest that Moscow establish closed communication channels, Sergey Lavrov said earlier.
The German Embassy in Russia told "Izvestia" that the German authorities would make diplomatic efforts to achieve a cease-fire and start the negotiation process.
"The German government is convinced that Europe will have to sit at the negotiating table as soon as the interests of European security are affected," the diplomatic mission added.
European countries need to participate in the negotiations on Ukraine in order to maintain their influence on Kiev, says Natalia Yeremina, a professor at St. Petersburg State University. In addition, there is no monolithic position within the EU to support Ukraine. Moreover, the desire to stop sponsoring the Armed Forces of Ukraine is beginning to prevail not only in Bulgaria or Slovakia, but also in the locomotive countries of the European Union — Germany and France.
For example, the "Alternative for Germany", which advocates dialogue with the Russian Federation, won the parliamentary elections in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg—Vorpommern. At the same time, the rating of the ruling CDU/CSU bloc dropped to a record 19%. Against this background, Johann Vadefoul requested talks with Lavrov in order to show diplomatic activity and correct Merz's falling rating, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
A similar situation is developing in France, where the approval of President Emmanuel Macron has dropped to 16%. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also said that Kiev's support lowers her rating. The continuation of huge spending on Ukraine amid rising fuel prices is increasingly agitating European public opinion. The head of the Slovak government, Robert Fico, spoke very eloquently on this topic: "This is a crisis that has not been here for a long time, and we are always dealing with Ukraine."
However, today most European capitals do not plan to reduce their support for Kiev or take into account Russia's geopolitical interests. Instead of searching for constructive ideas for a peaceful settlement within the EU, a discussion has unfolded about who and in what format will represent Europe in possible negotiations with Moscow. Among the options: a European troika consisting of Britain, Germany and France, or a separate special envoy on behalf of the entire EU. However, no decision on this issue, as usual, has not yet been made.
Aggressive political circles in Europe want to continue using Ukraine as a tool to fight against Russia, Vladimir Putin said on September 25. This allows them to continue investing money in support of Kiev and try to deceive their own citizens with the thesis that Russia is allegedly going to attack someone, the president believes. He stressed once again: Moscow is not preparing for war with Europe, there are no motives or grounds for this.
Prospects for settlement negotiations
Donald Trump named the deadline by which he would like to end the conflict — before the onset of winter. This is due to the fact that it will be difficult for Kiev to go through the cold period due to the destruction of the energy infrastructure and the lack of missiles for air defense systems, the Western press reports. During the meeting with Zelensky, the American leader urged him to go to Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, Zelensky rejected the proposal, Bloomberg reports, citing sources. At the same time, the Kremlin has repeatedly noted that he can come to Moscow to negotiate a settlement and be provided with the necessary security guarantees.
The parties to the negotiations will have to refer to previous experience one way or another. Russia believes that a certain agreement was reached at the Moscow-Washington summit in Anchorage in August 2025, and is still ready to return to it, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. In the summer, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that new ideas were needed to move forward in Ukraine. And in early September, special envoy of the American president Steve Witkoff and businessman Jared Kushner visited Moscow and Kiev, after which talks began about returning to the trilateral format of the Russian Federation – USA – Ukraine.
Russia was ready to resume negotiations after the elections, but Kiev tried to inflict a massive blow on Moscow, and also attacked polling stations in the regions, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on September 25. "Proposals" for a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis are "on the table," but now, after the attacks during the election days, Russia "will think about it properly," the Head of state said. The Kiev regime must understand that no amount of provocation will improve its situation, Putin stressed. The Russian Federation repaired the damage after attacks on civilian targets, but for Kiev, our response turned out to be so sensitive and destructive that the enemy requested a truce, in particular, on energy, the president said.
The possibility of returning to the implementation of the Anchorage agreements remains, political analyst Denis Denisov noted in an interview with "Izvestia". The political part of the negotiations can begin after Ukraine withdraws its troops from the territory they occupy, as Moscow insists. In the meantime, Russia continues to liberate Donbass by military means. Control over Dobropolye is crucial for the complete liberation of the DPR. The Russian Armed Forces continue to destroy the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine surrounded in the city — on September 27, it became known about the liberation of 94 more buildings.
The prospects for a peaceful settlement rest on the fact that European countries, which have become Ukraine's main sponsors, do not show any intention to move to real negotiations, taking into account the interests of the Russian Federation. Their interest is in prolonging the conflict in the hope of defeating the Republican Party in the midterm elections to the US Congress in November. Washington needs at least some progress on the Ukrainian track. However, it will be too difficult for the Trump administration to achieve this without real pressure on its European partners and Kiev.
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