In Paris, on the eve of renewed US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi, the foreign ministers of Europe's G7 partners told Marco Rubio what history has repeatedly taught: a settlement that reshapes a continent's security cannot be written in a room that excludes the people who must live with it. Their insistence on a seat at the table comes in the wake of American electoral upheaval and a Washington that appears to be stepping back from Ukraine and from pressure on Moscow. It is a moment in which alliances are being tested not by open rupture but by the quiet question of who gets to decide.
European Allies Demand Seat at Table as US Mediates Russia-Ukraine Talks in Abu Dhabi
No one has the right to decide our fate behind our backs
Mark
Why did the Europeans choose this meeting to say they want a seat at the table?
Mimi
Because the timing gave them one. Rubio was in the room in Paris, and the Abu Dhabi talks begin the next day. It was also his first meeting with allies since the midterm losses.
Mark
What exactly are they worried about?
Mimi
Germany's Johann Wadephul said a fundamental change to Europe's security architecture would be neither necessary nor right nor appropriate. That is a response to Trump's rhetoric about a new arrangement for Europe.
Luke
Worth noting that the reporting describes rhetoric. No concrete US proposal for a new architecture is laid out in what we have.
Mimi
Fair. The concern is about direction, not a published plan.
Mark
And Ukraine's position?
Mimi
Andrii Sybiha said no one has the right to decide Ukraine's fate behind its back. He is due to join the Ukraine session in Paris on Tuesday.
Luke
Wadephul says Moscow has made no substantial contribution to negotiations. That is his assessment, and Russia's side is not in this account.
Mark
What does Al Jazeera's reporter say about where things stand?
Mimi
Rebecca Collard said day one ended with little clarity on US policy after the midterms, and that the wider question is the future of multilateralism among these countries.
Luke
Which means we do not yet know whether Washington will bring Europe into the process. That is the open question.
Il Polso
- European G7 ministers confronted Rubio in Paris, insisting that no deal to end the war in Ukraine can be made without Europe.
- Germany's foreign minister warned that any change to Europe's security architecture would be neither necessary nor right, and Washington's talk of a new order is causing alarm.
- Talks in Abu Dhabi open just as the Paris meeting runs, forcing allies to press Moscow to abandon maximalist demands and prove it is serious.
- Russian strikes on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure continue, leaving Europe seeing no meaningful Russian contribution to momentum.
- Allied unease over US cuts to Ukraine aid and sanctions, and its unilateral drift after the midterm losses, leaves the Western front uncertain as Tuesday's talks approach.
In Paris, on the eve of renewed US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi, the foreign ministers of Europe's G7 partners told Marco Rubio what history has repeatedly taught: a settlement that reshapes a continent's security cannot be written in a room that excludes the people who must live with it. Their insistence on a seat at the table comes in the wake of American electoral upheaval and a Washington that appears to be stepping back from Ukraine and from pressure on Moscow. It is a moment in which alliances are being tested not by open rupture but by the quiet question of who gets to decide.
On Monday in Paris, European foreign ministers sat down with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and made a clear demand: no settlement of Russia's war on Ukraine can be reached without Europe. The meeting of Group of Seven foreign ministers, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, carried extra weight. It was Rubio's first encounter with allies since last week's midterm elections, which dealt a stunning blow to President Donald Trump's Republican Party.
The timing was pointed. US-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine open Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, overlapping with the Paris gathering. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told reporters that changing Europe's security architecture without Europe would be neither necessary nor right. "There can be no solution without Europe – only with Europe," he said, responding to Trump's growing talk of a new order for the continent.
Wadephul also laid out what he expects from Moscow. The Abu Dhabi talks must show whether Russia is truly ready to negotiate, and he warned against a "negotiation show." With attacks on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure continuing, Europe sees no substantial Russian move toward real progress. Ukraine's foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, will join a session on Ukraine in Paris, insisting that no one has the right to decide his country's fate behind its back.
Beneath the diplomacy lies wider unease about Washington's direction: its scaling back of aid to Ukraine and of sanctions on Russia, and what allies see as an increasingly unilateral course. Iran, too, will loom large, as G7 partners have voiced doubts about the US and Israeli war there and fear further escalation. The central question is whether Russia proves its seriousness in Abu Dhabi, and whether Washington brings Europe into the process or goes ahead without it.
On Monday in Paris, European foreign ministers sat down with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and told him that no deal to end Russia's war on Ukraine can be made without them. The setting was a meeting of Group of Seven foreign ministers, a bloc that includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The timing sharpened the message. US-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in Abu Dhabi, and the two-day Paris meeting, which ends Tuesday, overlaps with them. It was also Rubio's first meeting with allies since last week's midterm elections, in which President Donald Trump's Republican Party suffered stunning losses.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul spoke after his talks with Rubio. He said it would be neither necessary, nor right, nor appropriate to make a fundamental change to Europe's security architecture. The allies were reacting to Trump's growing rhetoric about a new security architecture for Europe. "Europe belongs at this table," Wadephul said. "There can be no solution without Europe – only with Europe."
He also set out what he expects from Moscow. The Abu Dhabi talks, he said, must show whether Russia is genuinely prepared to negotiate. He urged the Kremlin to give up maximalist demands and warned against any "negotiation show" in the capital of the United Arab Emirates. With Russian attacks on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure continuing, Wadephul said, Europe sees no substantial contribution from Moscow toward giving the negotiations serious momentum.
Ukraine's foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, is due to join a session on Ukraine in Paris on Tuesday. Before leaving for the meeting, he said no one has the right to decide Ukraine's fate behind its back.
Behind the diplomacy is a broader unease among G7 members about the direction of US policy. That includes Washington's scaling back of support for Ukraine and of sanctions on Russia, along with what the allies see as an increasingly unilateral course. Ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Korea and Brazil are also attending the Paris gathering.
Iran is expected to feature prominently in Tuesday's discussions. Washington's G7 allies have repeatedly voiced scepticism about the US and Israeli war on Iran, and fear that further US military action could deepen the crisis rather than resolve it.
Al Jazeera's Rebecca Collard, reporting from Paris, said the first day ended with little clarity on US policy after the midterms. The second day, she said, will include a session on instability in the Middle East. But she pointed to something bigger on the table: the future of the multilateralism that has shaped relations among these countries for decades.
The things to watch are whether Russia shows in Abu Dhabi that it is serious about negotiating, and whether Washington draws Europe into the process or proceeds without it.
Citazioni salienti
Europe belongs at this table. There can be no solution without Europe – only with Europe.— Johann Wadephul, German Foreign Minister
No one has the right to decide our fate behind our backs.— Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine's foreign minister
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