Europe Editor
Russia said it was open to dialogue with European countries but would not accept ultimatums, as signs increase that the EU may seek talks with Moscow after largely shunning contacts since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said common sense dictated the need for such contacts because of the “enormous number” of complex issues on the agenda, but he said the Europeans needed to change their approach to Russia.
“The Europeans have a very serious misconception: They assume that negotiations with Russia must be conducted from a position of strength and based on Russia’s weakness. This is the biggest mistake … Such talk will lead nowhere,” he told reporters.
“Does this stem from European incompetence, misinformation, or stupidity? We don’t know for sure, but it’s a fact.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he is open to talks with European governments but that they should make the first move because they were the ones to cut off ties.
The EU has imposed 20 rounds of sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Shift in European stance
After standing aside for well over a year and leaving it to US President Donald Trump to try to broker an end to the conflict, the EU has started to reach out cautiously to Russia.
The office of European Council President Antonio Costa has made “brief contacts at diplomatic level” with the Kremlin in recent weeks “to open communication channels”, an EU official said on Wednesday.
Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker told the Financial Times in an interview that the EU should take advantage of “momentum” around peace talks in Ukraine to push ahead with efforts to reopen negotiations with Mr Putin.
Mr Peskov said Russia was willing to talk if there was openness on the other side to engage in real dialogue, “not to engage in moralising or, especially, to issue ultimatums”.
Mr Costa’s initiative exposed divisions at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, however, with some saying it had not been coordinated with them and that the EU should focus on putting more pressure on Russia.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Europeans must be at the table as and when there are peace talks to end the war in Ukraine.
“We have always backed the idea that when the talks take place, Europeans must be at the table, because this concerns the interests of Europe,” said Mr Macron, speaking in Brussels.
Mr Macron added that Mr Costa could have his place at such negotiations, if his role in this capacity was clearly specified.
Ukraine hits Moscow with drone strikes
Ukraine said it is turning the tide of the war thanks to an intensified campaign of drone strikes deep inside Russia that has targeted ports, refineries and other key infrastructure.
Moscow disputes that, insisting it will keep fighting to achieve its objectives if no diplomatic settlement can be reached.
The governor of the Moscow region said that an eight-year-old girl had been killed in a massive Ukrainian attack that hit the capital and surrounding area a day earlier.
The attack, using hundreds of drones, set fire for the second time in three days to a big oil refinery in southeast Moscow.
“Indeed, drone attacks continue. Appropriate measures are being taken to mitigate the consequences,” Mr Peskov said.
Asked if Mr Putin had seen footage of the burning refinery, Mr Peskov told reporters they should check out images from Ukrainian cities that Russian forces had struck.
“These strikes will continue,” he said.
Two killed in northeastern Ukraine
Two people were killed and another two wounded after Russia hit the northeastern Ukrainian region of Sumy with bombs, drones and missiles, Ukraine’s police said.
Another nine, including four children, needed medical assistance after Russia hit Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv with bombs, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram.
A Russian drone attack killed one crew member of a Panama-flagged ship in the Black Sea waters and wounded two more, the Ukrainian deputy prime minister said.
Oleksiy Kuleba said on the Telegram app that another vessel, under the Saint Kitts and Nevis flag, was also hit and its three crew members were lightly injured.
Zelensky urges EU to fast-track Ukraine membership
EU leaders gathering in Brussels expect that the Trump administration will now devote more attention to the war in Ukraine.
Last night, they stopped short of calling for tougher trade measures against China, against the backdrop of a widening trade gap and accusations that Beijing is flooding the European market with heavily subsidised goods.
They talked well into the night on the big geopolitical challenges, mindful that there is at least some good news with the US-Iran peace agreement.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged European allies to help Kyiv counter Russian ballistic missiles and to speed up the purchase of US Patriot air defence systems.
He said Ukraine was shaping Europe’s defence and that the best security guarantee was fast-tracked membership of the EU.
Leaders also discussed how to counter what is regarded as Chinese dumping of electric vehicles and other industrial goods on the European market, as well as how to become less dependent on China for rare earths and other critical minerals.
However, they stopped short of calling on the European Commission to take tough trade measures against Beijing for now.
Mr Zelensky, whose comments were posted in a video on X, told the summit that every democratic nation in Europe deserved to be in the EU and “Ukraine merits this because it has paid more than any other country for its right to be free, independent and … European”.
European Union ambassadors agreed last week to advance membership talks with both Ukraine and ex-Soviet Moldova with discussions beginning on the first of six “clusters” to bring legislation and standards into line with the bloc.
“The future of Europe – free, united and of course in peace – is being decided in our defence. That shows how unique our situation is,” Mr Zelensky said.
He acknowledged that not all members would support an accelerated accession.
“The most important such step – I know that not everyone loves this – could be a fast-track path for Ukraine to join the EU.”
Mr Zelensky also said the security of Europe depended on securing funding for Ukraine’s military, and the EU and the “coalition of willing” countries supporting it could develop the financial instruments to ensure that.
A statement issued by the European Council after the summit welcomed the beginning of accession talks for Ukraine and said it “looks forward to the opening of the other clusters, in line with the merit-based approach”.
In an audio message issued at the end of the summit and an earlier meeting of the Ramstein group on military assistance for Ukraine, Mr Zelensky restated that Ukraine was ready for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on resolving the more than four-year-old war.
However, he urged Europe to remain vigilant and maintain pressure on Moscow.
“Europe has to be engaged for us to have a strong position, to commit fully on sanctions without loopholes, on confiscation without exceptions and on funding Ukraine,” he said.
Additional reporting: Reuters
