Europas Rolle: Auch Laschet fordert EU-Unterhändler für Ukraine-Gespräche

Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Armin Laschet (CDU) has endorsed Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's demand for a united European voice in Ukraine negotiations. Laschet told the Italian newspaper "Corriere de la Sera" that Meloni's proposal highlights the ambiguity and fragmentation of European foreign policy. Meloni had proposed the matter in a letter to EU Council President António Costa.

"My continued demand is for a clear decision on who sits at the negotiating table on behalf of the European Union and under what mandate," Meloni wrote. The Italian prime minister stated that an "uneven approach with competing initiatives" would neither assist our partners nor those we need to convince to end a senseless aggression.

Laschet supported Meloni's stance, hoping the proposal would be taken up, with the election of a European envoy authorized to speak with Ukraine and Russia. Currently, each EU member maintains its own diplomatic contacts, while Laschet criticized others for making claims about European affairs, such as US businessmen Witkoff and Kushner discussing Europe's future in Moscow.

Laschet refrained from naming specific individuals to speak for Europeans, but emphasized that the decision must be made at the European Council led by Meloni on December 17-18. He urged Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to take action on this issue, criticizing their consistent refusal to engage in talks. The Baltics and Poland expressed skepticism about a unified negotiation approach that might overlook their security interests, fearing that Western European states might negotiate a favorable compromise for Moscow while ignoring those directly bordering Russia.