European Union delegates to join next round of peace talks with Russia, says US envoy

UPDATE - follow-up to U.S., Ukraine say Europe to join Russia talks as Putin sticks to hardline stance: European delegates will join the next round of peace talks with Russia, following more than four hours of discussions between U.S. envoys and Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin.

Talks and Diplomacy

U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met with the Russian President in Moscow before flying to Dublin to debrief Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Speaking on the tarmac of an Irish military airbase, Mr. Zelenskyy welcomed the move to include European negotiators, stating they will have a voice rather than remain on the sidelines as they did during earlier talks in Abu Dhabi. Mr. Kushner confirmed on X that both sides agreed to expand the upcoming negotiations to include European partners, noting that significant differences remain even though the team is encouraged by the progress. According to an EU official, representatives from five European capitals and the European Commission met with the U.S. envoys, and a new multilateral meeting will be fixed soon. Meanwhile, Kaja Kallas, Vice President of the European Commission and the EU's top diplomat, told BBC's Newshour that the presence of a European delegate showed the Kremlin realised Europe is a big player.

Russian Stance

Despite the agreement to expand the talks, Mr. Putin indicated that Moscow will not compromise on its hardline demands to end the nearly five years of war. The Russian leader rejected foreign peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, warning that any such deployment would be treated as a legitimate target and a continuation of war. He also dismissed the idea of a territorial settlement involving demilitarised zones, stating that for Russia, the only line of demarcation is the state border. Furthermore, Mr. Putin proposed a humanitarian mission to the city of Kostyantynivka, where he claimed 400 to 500 civilians still live. Dmytro Lytvyn, an adviser to Mr. Zelenskyy, warned that Russia would try to rotate in new troops under the cover of this humanitarian operation.

Prisoner Swap

Thursday also brought an agreement between Russia and Ukraine for another prisoner exchange, which is set to be the largest swap since the full-scale invasion in 2022. Mr. Kushner stated the exchange would return thousands of people to their families, though further details on the timeline or exact numbers were not provided.

Context

This diplomatic push comes as roughly one-fifth of Ukraine remains under the control of Russian forces following the 2014 annexation of Crimea and the full-scale offensive launched in 2022. European leaders have expressed deep security concerns, and Taoiseach Micheál Martin noted in Dublin that the region's security has been fundamentally reshaped by the ongoing conflict.