Merz: Germany to join new talks on ending the war in Ukraine

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on 13 November, at an informal meeting of European Union (EU) leaders in Dublin, that Germany will take part in possible new talks on ending Russia's war against Ukraine in the coming weeks. "Germany will definitely be there, that is completely clear," Merz said. His remark matters because European countries have so far not been fully represented at the negotiating table.

What happened in Abu Dhabi

During talks held this week in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, European representatives held separate meetings with the Ukrainian delegation but did not take part in the US-led sessions between Kyiv and Moscow. That raised the question of who would represent Europe in talks with Russia.

US envoy Jared Kushner said on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was ready to accept European involvement in the process. Moscow, however, stated on Friday that it had not yet agreed to allow Europeans to join the US-led negotiations.

European representation

According to Merz, talks with European participation will take place for the first time in the coming weeks. "We will, of course, continue to represent common European interests," the chancellor said. He expects the same group of European representatives that attended in Abu Dhabi to take part: representatives of Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the EU and NATO.

The EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, urged the gathered leaders to follow the current EU rules. Under them, she, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen represent the EU on foreign and security policy.