Italy's Meloni warns Europe risks irrelevance in Ukraine peace talks

Italy's Meloni warns Europe risks irrelevance in Ukraine peace talks
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Summary Meloni said that she is not seeking a place at the negotiating table for herself or Italy, but Rome will not ⁠accept commitments being negotiated without an EU mandate

ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday Europe risked becoming irrelevant in any Ukraine peace negotiations unless it ends competing diplomatic initiatives and agrees on a single representative empowered to speak on its behalf.

In a letter to EU Council ⁠President Antonio Costa, Meloni says proliferation of different negotiating formats is making Europe less credible and giving the impression it is proceeding in "random order".

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She added that she is not seeking a place at the negotiating table for herself or Italy, but Rome will not ⁠accept commitments being negotiated without an EU mandate.

Meloni calls for EU leaders to decide who should represent the bloc in negotiations and ⁠what mandate that person should have.

Italian PM asked for the issue to be discussed at an informal European ⁠Council in Dublin next week, with a formal decision to be taken ⁠at a December summit following coordination with Britain, Norway and other European partners.