BRUSSELS: A diplomatic overture to the Kremlin by European Council President Antonio Costa has exposed divisions among EU leaders over how to handle relations with Russia even as the war in Ukraine shows no signs of ending soon. A senior aide to Costa made brief contacts with the Kremlin in recent weeks “to open communication channels”, according to an EU official, breaking years of silence between Brussels and Russia.

The EU has sought to isolate Russia diplomatically and economically since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. And if European leaders have recently begun discussing the possibility of direct talks with Moscow, reactions to Costa’s initiative showed they don’t yet agree when, how, or who should be in charge.

Lack of coordination

Costa’s move drew criticism from some leaders at a two-day summit in Brussels, who said it was not coordinated with them and that the EU should focus on putting more pressure on Russia, according to people familiar with the closed-door discussions, which took place late on Thursday.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron were not enthusiastic about the move, while Nordic and Baltic countries were most disturbed by it, according to the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity on Friday.

As the summit ended, French President Macron told reporters that any peace talks would be primarily about military capabilities and security guarantees for Ukraine.

Costa could play a role, Macron said, but “he cannot represent (EU states) when security guarantees are at stake.”

Merz pointed out that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had already agreed key points for possible talks with Moscow with the so-called E3 format France, Germany, Britain which has annoyed other leaders such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as they are not included.

Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs was among several leaders who said this was all too early. “Diplomatic channels with Russia don’t matter if Russia doesn’t want to do diplomacy,” he said.

As president of the European Council, Costa, a former Portuguese prime minister, chairs and organises summits of EU leaders and seeks to build consensus among member states. He can also represent the EU externally.

He defended his initiative, saying: “What I’m doing through my office is to establish a diplomatic channel because we cannot depend only on others to interpret Russian messages and we must be able to convey to Russia our own messages.”

That move, he said, was necessary to support Ukraine. Several countries did voice their support for his efforts.

“Opening up a channel is not a mistake in our view,” Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also backed Costa, saying that opening a diplomatic channel was necessary.

The US has so far led diplomatic efforts to reach a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, with the EU largely sidelined, despite Kyiv and Brussels saying it should play a role. Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten was among leaders who said this would take time and Europe would have to prepare carefully for any future talks before deciding who should represent the continent.

Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2026