Will Putin refuse to negotiate with Europe? Kuleba names the main reason

Russian leader Vladimir Putin will not consider Europe a viable negotiating partner for ending the war against Ukraine, Ukraine’s former Foreign Minister said in an interview with Radio NV.

According to Kuleba, European nations lack the unity required to guarantee compliance with any potential agreements with Russia. He noted that even leading powers, such as Germany and France, are unable to ensure a consolidated position across the EU, partly due to the growing influence of Northern European countries and Poland.

“First, we do not have European Union, but essentially Normandy Plus — Germany, France, and they’ve also brought the Brits on board. But the situation has changed. Are these two countries, Germany and France, capable today of securing a pan-European consensus around whatever they might theoretically agree upon with Russia? I doubt it, with all due respect," Kuleba said.

Furthermore, the former minister emphasized that Russian policy is traditionally rooted in a worldview defined by a standoff between two superpowers—the US and Russia. In this logic, Europe is not perceived as an independent geopolitical player, which ultimately drives the Kremlin's reluctance to engage in talks with it.

"He despises them only slightly less than he despises us. You don't negotiate with someone you don't consider... You spent 20 years telling everyone they are nobody, and now you're going to sit down at the negotiating table with them? ... The entirety of Russian policy is built around the image of two superpowers (the US and Russia) calling the shots. It is an inferiority complex that drives them. For them, Europe is not a sovereign negotiator," the former foreign minister said.