Witkoff Floats European Role in Next Ukraine Peace Talks After Abu Dhabi Sidelined EU

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said Thursday he hopes to announce a new round of trilateral negotiations on Russia’s war against Ukraine, potentially including European representatives, after European allies were excluded from the main negotiating table during the latest US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi. “We hope that we will be able to announce new trilateral talks soon – hopefully, perhaps, at the conclusion of this meeting – which I hope would include the Europeans,” Witkoff said during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday, as reported by TASS.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Witkoff and fellow US envoy Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow to brief Putin on the outcome of the recent negotiations in Abu Dhabi. As of 3:21 p.m. Kyiv time, their meeting with the Russian leader had been underway for an hour. Putin said he would discuss the territorial issue with the US envoys. The prospect of European participation marks a potential shift in the negotiating format, which has so far centered on Ukraine, Russia, and the United States. Why Europe was sidelined in Abu Dhabi During the Nov. 10-11 negotiations in Abu Dhabi, representatives of the UK, France, Germany, Italy, NATO, and the European Commission attended separate consultations but were not included in the core trilateral discussions with Russia. The arrangement allowed European governments to coordinate positions with Kyiv and Washington without giving them a direct voice in negotiations with Moscow. Other Topics of Interest Merz Could Speak With Putin After Abu Dhabi Peace Talks Merz said he would not rule out meeting Putin if the Russian president attended the G20 summit in Miami in December. European representatives held separate meetings with the Ukrainian and US delegations ahead of the trilateral negotiations. Ukraine’s delegation head Rustem Umerov said Kyiv was doing everything possible to keep Europe involved in the diplomatic process. However, Moscow opposed European participation from the outset. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dismissed European involvement, suggesting European officials should “stay at the hotel” in Abu Dhabi. Kremlin officials also confirmed that Russia had no direct discussions with the European delegation. The US, by contrast, is reportedly pushing for the EU to have a seat at the negotiating table, Politico reported. Europe’s exclusion matters because European governments would be expected to help finance Ukraine’s reconstruction, support its long-term defense, and implement security arrangements that could emerge from a peace settlement. The negotiations also touch on the future of Europe’s wider security architecture, including NATO’s military presence and Russia’s demands for restrictions on the Alliance’s activities in Eastern Europe. Moscow has long sought to renegotiate Europe’s security arrangements, including through proposals presented to the US in December 2021 demanding that NATO halt further enlargement and reduce its military presence in countries that joined after 1997. Europe divided over who should represent it Europe’s limited role in Abu Dhabi has also exposed divisions among its governments over who should speak on the continent’s behalf. France, Germany, and the UK supported participation through the E3 group, while Italy and Poland pushed for broader European representation. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski warned against Western European countries negotiating with Russia over the heads of Eastern European states. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, meanwhile, called for a single European representative with a clear negotiating mandate, warning that the bloc risked becoming irrelevant if it continued speaking through competing diplomatic channels. Ukraine has consistently insisted that European countries must participate directly in negotiations affecting their security. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha reiterated that position alongside EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Sikorski ahead of the Abu Dhabi meeting, saying there should be no decisions about Europe without Europe. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.