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France proposed that Europe join peace negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine, but Russia responded with profanity.
According to Financial Times, in February French presidential advisers Emmanuel Bonne and Bertrand Buchwalter visited Moscow for talks with Yuri Ushakov, an aide to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Sources told the newspaper that French officials insisted Moscow agree to give Europeans a seat at the negotiating table.
“Ushakov’s response was essentially: ‘Sorry, actually no, we don’t want that — go to hell,’” a senior European diplomat said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the newspaper that “Europeans do not want to help the peace process.” He added that when the French representative arrived, he “brought no positive signals and therefore heard nothing positive in return.”
Europe wants a role in peace talks
European leaders have recently begun discussing the possibility of restoring contacts with Putin. In particular, French President Emmanuel Macron suggested such contact could take place “in the coming weeks.”
After that, Macron’s chief diplomatic adviser Emmanuel Bonne traveled to Moscow, where he held confidential meetings with representatives of the Russian leadership.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also said the European Union is always ready to negotiate with Russia to end the war in Ukraine, though he rejected the idea of “parallel channels” of communication.
European leaders want to join Ukraine, the United States, and Russia in the peace talks. Ukraine supports the idea, while Russia strongly opposes it.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said Europe should participate in negotiations on Ukraine because it finances a significant part of the country’s defense against Russia.
Meanwhile, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said he wants EU member states to grant the bloc a mandate to initiate negotiations with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine.
