EU leaders reject Merkel-Macron push for Putin summit
European Union leaders rejected an appeal from Germany and France to hold formal talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, handing Angela Merkel a rare public defeat at what could be her final EU summit as chancellor.
The proposal was dropped from the final communique following talks that stretched into the wee hours of Friday, Merkel said as she left the summit venue in Brussels. EU diplomats had earlier said that some countries in Eastern Europe were prepared to veto the plan, such was the strength of their opposition.
The EU hasn’t held summit talks with Putin since the annexation of Crimea but Merkel argued that the EU can’t just outsource its relationship with Russia to the White House. Her proposal, which was endorsed by President Emmanuel Macron of France, “The Kremlin does not understand free concessions,” Latvian Prime Minister Arturs Karins said heading into the talks. “The Kremlin understands power politics.”
The proposal was also publicly criticised by Mark Rutte of the Netherlands, who told reporters that he wouldn’t attend any talks with Putin. Romania’s Klaus Iohannis said it’s too early to talk about a summit with Russia and Estonia’s Kaja Kallas said she was surprised to discover the issue was even on the agenda.alarmed many other leaders who felt they’d been blindsided.
https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3138702/eu-leaders-reject-merkel-macron-push-putin-summit
