EU picks negotiators for Ukraine peace talks

EU leaders have agreed on who will represent Europe in future negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. The negotiating team will include heads of EU institutions and five major European states. The "European negotiating team on peace in Ukraine" will consist of representatives from EU institutions and the E5 countries—Germany, Britain, France, Italy, and Poland—announced European Council President Antonio Costa on Friday, November 13, following an informal EU summit in Dublin. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed the EU institutions involved are the Commission and the Council, stating, "We will support Ukraine and defend our interests." The decision was welcomed by the German government, which said it confirmed the correctness of Berlin's previous approach and stressed the importance of focusing on the substance of a peace settlement. Costa emphasized that Europe must "speak with a clear and united voice in all negotiations that determine Ukraine's future and the security of our continent," while smaller EU countries had advocated for the participation of EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas or Costa himself amid ongoing US-mediated talks between Ukraine and Russia.