BRUSSELS — Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder is unfit to represent Europe in any peace talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war, the EU’s chief diplomat Kaja Kallas said Monday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested over the weekend that Schröder, who was German chancellor from 1998 to 2005, could represent European countries in peace talks. Schröder previously held roles with Russian state-owned energy companies.
“First, if we give the right to Russia to appoint a negotiator on our behalf, that would not be very wise,” Kallas said on her way into a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels.
“And second, I think Gerhard Schröder has been the high-level lobbyist for Russian state-owned companies so it’s clear why Putin wants him to be the person, so he would be sitting on both sides of the table,” she added.
So far, the U.S. has acted as the chief mediator in Russia-Ukraine talks while Europe has been on the sidelines — though some leaders have called for Europe to take a more active role.
Over the weekend, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Europe should participate in the talks, represented by officials from the so-called E3 group of powers — Germany, France and the U.K.
Asked under what conditions the EU could accept entering direct talks with Putin, Kallas said that Moscow needed to make concessions and mentioned the withdrawal of Russian troops from Moldova as one possible step to get Europeans more involved.
“The issue of Eur…
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"And second, I think Gerhard Schröder has been a high-level lobbyist for Russian state-owned companies, so it's clear why Putin wants him to be the person, so he would be sitting on both sides of the table," she added.
So far, the U.S. has acted as the chief mediator in Russia-Ukraine talks, while Europe has been on the sidelines—though some leaders have called for Europe to take a more active role.
Over the weekend, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Europe should participate in the talks, represented by officials from the so-called E3 group of powers—Germany, France, and the U.K.
Asked under what conditions the EU could accept entering direct talks with Putin, Kallas said that Moscow needed to make concessions and mentioned the withdrawal of Russian troops from Moldova as one possible step to get Europeans more involved.
"The issue of European security is that Russia is constantly attacking its neighbors," added the former Estonian prime minister. "And for that, we need concessions also from the Russian side. I was last week in Moldova, where there are Russian troops, for example. That could be one of the conditions to have security and stability in the region, that they take their troops away."