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Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama told POLITICO last month that refusing to engage with Russia's leadership was a "strategic mistake"...
Ukraine wants Europe to help revive stalled peace efforts with Russia by pursuing a narrow first step: a mutual ban on attacks on each side's airports.
The idea, proposed by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, would give European leaders a concrete role in diplomacy at a time when US-led talks between Moscow and Kiev have slowed and Russian President Vladimir Putin has shown little appetite for a broader deal to end the war.
“ Maybe we need a new role for Europe in our peace efforts. Maybe we would try to resolve or achieve a so-called ceasefire at the airport ,” Sybiha told POLITICO on the sidelines of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.
The proposal would focus on a limited Moscow-Kiev agreement not to strike airports. Sybiha argued that Putin might have an incentive to engage in such an agreement as major Russian hubs, including Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport and St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport, are becoming increasingly vulnerable to long-range Ukrainian attacks.
" Maybe our European allies, by creating a platform, or maybe an ad hoc group, we could discuss the ceasefire at the airport," he said, adding that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has already discussed the idea with several European leaders.
But Kiev is not asking Europe to replace Washington. On the contrary, Sybiha said, any European effort should reinforce U.S.-led diplomacy and avoid creating competing tracks.
" It should be a complementary path, not instead of this, not an alternative ," Sybiha said, adding that Europe must speak with "one voice."
Sybiha's proposal comes at a time when some European leaders argue that the continent needs a more direct role in diplomacy on the Ukraine issue.
French President Emmanuel Macron has hinted at the possibility of direct talks with Putin, while German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper over the weekend that Europe must have a place in the talks.
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama told POLITICO last month that refusing to engage with Russia's leadership was a "strategic mistake."
Senior EU officials have so far been cautious, arguing that Putin has shown no serious intention to stop his war. But the EU's top diplomat, Kaia Kallas, opened the door on Monday to a discussion on Europe's role, saying foreign ministers would address the issue when they meet later this month.
Earlier on Monday, Kallas rejected Putin's suggestion that former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, an early employee of Russian state-owned companies, could act as a mediator on behalf of Europe.
Sybiha joked that Putin could nominate American action star Steven Seagal or French actor Gérard Depardieu, both prominent sympathizers of Putin's Russia, for the post.
Sybiha raised the ceasefire proposal at the airport with EU foreign ministers behind closed doors, according to an EU official familiar with the discussion. The official reacted cautiously, saying the ministers would first need to determine what Europe wanted from any direct contact with Moscow. / Adapted from “Pamphlet” by “Politico”
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