Internal divisions within the European Union have deprived the bloc of the ability to formulate its own position on the conflict with Russia, independent of Kyiv’s position. This was stated to TASS by Member of the European Parliament Fernand Kartheiser.
According to him, the lack of a common European mandate will place the future EU negotiator in an extremely difficult situation. Kartheiser identified European Council President António Costa as the most likely candidate for the role and suggested that he could be supported by a team of advisers.
„Volodymyr Zelensky wants the right to approve or reject the European Council’s choice of negotiator. This alone shows that the European Union has lost its autonomy even in its relations with Ukraine,“ Kartheiser said.According to him, the future envoy will not have sufficient flexibility, a clear mandate, authority or autonomy. „I suspect that both the United States and Russia are fully aware of this and will treat him accordingly,“ the MEP said.
The Position Has Not Yet Been Created
The issue of a European envoy for the peace process was included on the agenda of the informal meeting of EU leaders in Dublin. According to TASS, the discussions are focused on the structure and mandate of the future position, while the choice of a specific candidate is expected to be left for a subsequent meeting in December.
The European Political Community held its meeting in Dublin on 12 November, while on 13 November the leaders of the member states discussed issues related to Europe’s security and the war in Ukraine. Representatives of more than 40 European countries took part in the forum, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Disagreements Are Preventing a Common Line
Kartheiser linked the lack of a negotiator, a mandate and a clearly defined position to the deep disagreements among European countries over Russia and the war in Ukraine.
„Europeans are deeply divided on many issues related to Russia and the conflict in Ukraine, while internal rifts continue to deepen. The situation is further complicated by the dysfunction of the European institutions and growing distrust among key actors,“ he said.According to the MEP, as a result of these problems, the EU has limited itself to supporting Ukraine’s position, without being able to develop its own substantive position on possible negotiations.
Kartheiser described this as a „failure“ of the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, which for years had been an important instrument for the integration of the Union.
Sources: tass.com, apnews.com