Report: Ukraine's EU Allies Quietly Discuss Prospect of Negotiations

Above: A woman walks in front of a destroyed house after Russian shelling in the town of Kostiantynivka, Ukraine, on Nov. 13, 2024. Image copyright: Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu/Contributor via Getty Images

The Facts

  • Publicly, Ukraine's EU allies continue their staunch statements of support for the country's war aims. However, according to a report in the Washington Post on Wednesday, in closed-door meetings, there is "a quiet but growing shift toward the notion that the war with Russia will end only through negotiations."

  • According to 10 current and former EU and NATO diplomats spoken to by the publication, some are actively laying the foundation for such talks and they include the once-taboo subject of land concessions to achieve a deal.


The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

With Trump returning to the White House, threatening to cut aid to Ukraine and leaving it with a bad deal, EU leaders realize it may be better to brace this difficult topic themselves in the hopes it will at least secure Ukraine's long-term stability.

Pro-Russia narrative

Ukraine's allies are finally beginning to see sense that any peace deal, which Russia has long advocated for, would have to take on the realities on the ground. This is a welcome development.


Metaculus Prediction


Go Deeper


Establishment split

CRITICAL

PRO