DUBLIN, Nov. 13 — U.S. envoy Jared Kushner said Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin would give European participation in Ukraine peace talks “a try,” while fellow envoy Steve Witkoff said European representatives would join the next round of negotiations.
Kushner and Witkoff met Putin in Moscow earlier Thursday before traveling to Dublin for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Kushner said that the peace deal cannot be concluded “without the Europeans being at the table” and that progress had been made with Putin on the issue.
Zelensky, who attended the ninth European Political Community summit in Dublin on Thursday, called on Europe to become a regular participant in peace negotiations, saying European countries should have a voice in talks concerning the continent’s security.
Following his meeting with the U.S. envoys, Zelensky said that an agreement had been reached on what would be the largest prisoner-of-war exchange between Russia and Ukraine since the conflict began. Kushner said arrangements had been made for a major exchange involving “thousands of” prisoners.
During the Dublin summit, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz played down the urgency of appointing a European representative, stressing the need for a common European position.
European leaders have yet to agree on who should represent them in the negotiations.(Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
