Meloni: person from large EU country can't represent EU at Russia talks
The sole EU negotiator with Russia on ending the aggression against Ukraine should not represent a large European Union country, President of the Council of Ministers of Italy Giorgia Meloni believes.
"Regarding the candidate, I have seen and read that many names are circulating. But if we want to achieve a result, I will say this: I think it will be extremely difficult to propose a person from one of the largest European countries," she said at a press conference on Wednesday following the G7 summit in France.
"Such a nomination, in my opinion, will only complicate reaching an agreement, so I would look toward the 'medium-sized' states of the European Union," she believes.
In addition, the Italian Prime Minister spoke out against the ‘proliferation’ of formats within the EU regarding the formulation of a strategy toward Russia. "This proliferation of formats ultimately risks making Europe's actions ineffective," she emphasized.
Meloni added that "there are many formats, but none of them have sufficient weight and authority to speak on behalf of the whole of Europe, and this problem needs to be solved."
Since the spring of this year, the European Union has been considering the idea of nominating a single candidate for negotiations with Russia regarding the war against Ukraine. Media outlets have reported on various candidates being considered; in particular, publications mentioned the candidacies of former German Chancellors Gerhard Schröder and Angela Merkel, as well as the former head of the Italian government and former President of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi.
According to media reports, some EU countries proposed the candidacies of President of Finland Alexander Stubb and former President of Finland Sauli Niinistö.
The EU closed all channels of communication with Moscow in 2022 following the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine.