Five European leaders, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, are being considered as possible negotiators with Russian President Vladimir Putin as Europe seeks a bigger role in efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Czech President Petr Pavel, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre are also under consideration, The Telegraph reported Friday, citing diplomatic sources. European diplomats have approached potential candidates about the role, the newspaper said.
The debate comes as U.S. President Donald Trump pursues direct engagement with Putin, raising fears in European capitals that Washington and Moscow could shape a peace deal while leaving Ukraine’s European allies on the sidelines.
“There first needs to be a consensus that we need to negotiate with the Russians,” a source familiar with the discussions told The Telegraph. “Secondly, there needs to be a consensus on what that position is.”
Trump’s efforts to broker a deal have made little progress, largely because Moscow has refused to abandon its maximalist territorial demands in Ukraine.
Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin in St. Petersburg on Oct. 21. The Kremlin later said Russia was prepared in principle to resume three-way talks with Ukraine and the U.S. in November. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has also confirmed that such talks could take place by early November, though no date has been set.
Washington faces criticism for pursuing economic cooperation with Moscow alongside peace negotiations. Witkoff has confirmed U.S. Treasury discussions with Putin’s economic envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, on potential trade and economic ties.
No consensus on who should represent Europe
Europe has yet to agree on a negotiator. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul faced criticism over his bid to lead the effort, while European Council President António Costa turned down the role at a recent EU leaders’ meeting.
One source told The Telegraph that a group of leaders may be more viable than a single negotiator because it could reduce competition between countries and the risk of individual candidates being vetoed.
The question of a European envoy is not new. In June, Meloni backed Stubb as a potential representative in negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.
Stubb has played a prominent role in European efforts to support Ukraine during the diplomatic process and maintains a close relationship with Trump. He joined Zelenskyy and Witkoff for talks in Oslo on Oct. 20. The Finnish president has also argued that pressure on Moscow is necessary to bring it to the negotiating table. In August, he said Ukraine’s long-range strikes inside Russia could help push Moscow toward peace talks.
Pavel, a former head of NATO’s Military Committee, has emerged as a candidate because of his military background and experience with NATO-Russia relations. Europe needs to appoint someone, or a group, authorized to speak on its behalf, he told the Axel Springer Global Reporters Network, of which The Telegraph is a member.
“President Putin disregards the European Union as an authority,” Pavel said, adding that Moscow has stopped engaging with several senior European officials and leaders.
Pavel has argued that negotiations could help prevent further escalation between Russia and the West. He has also suggested that the prospect of renewed trade and business ties could encourage Moscow to negotiate, while sanctions relief should depend on Russia agreeing to a cease-fire and a peace process.
Putin proposes Schroeder as mediator
Putin said in May that he would “personally” prefer Gerhard Schroeder, who was German chancellor from 1998 to 2005, to help restart dialogue between Russia and Europe.
The proposal was met with skepticism in Berlin. German government sources told Agence France-Presse that officials had “taken note” of Putin’s comments but viewed them as part of “a series of bogus offers” from Moscow.
Schroeder has remained close to Putin since leaving office and has held senior positions linked to Russian energy interests, including roles involving the Nord Stream gas pipelines and the Russian oil company Rosneft. He gave up his Rosneft board position in 2022 but has never publicly condemned Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
His potential appointment has divided Germany’s Social Democratic Party, to which Schroeder belongs.
Michael Roth, a former party lawmaker who chaired the Bundestag’s foreign affairs committee, told Tagesspiegel that a mediator “cannot be Putin’s buddy.” Any candidate must first be acceptable to Ukraine, he said. “Neither Moscow nor we can decide that on Kyiv’s behalf.”
Other party politicians have been more open to the idea. Adis Ahmetovic, the party’s foreign affairs spokesman in parliament, told Der Spiegel it should be “carefully considered” with European partners.
Kallas: Russia must not choose EU negotiator
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said May 11 that Russia should not influence the bloc’s choice of negotiator.
“If we give the right to Russia to appoint a negotiator on our behalf, that would not be very wise,” she said.
Kallas described Schroeder as a “high-level lobbyist for Russian state-owned companies,” arguing that Putin wanted someone who would effectively be “sitting on both sides of the table.” She also warned that Russia was seeking to expand its influence in Europe, citing Russian participation in sports organizations and at the Venice Biennale.
“Our adversaries are not sleeping,” Kallas said.
For now, Europe has no agreed negotiator and no unified position on when direct talks should begin.
