Europe will send a team of diplomats to the Ukraine peace talks, European Council President Antonio Costa announced in Dublin on Friday, November 13, ending a week of argument over who speaks for the continent: the team will be the European Union's institutions plus the so-called E5 — the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Poland — five members of the "coalition of the willing" that backs Ukraine, the Associated Press reported.

Source: Associated Press, Nov 13, 2026

Costa spoke at the end of a summit of EU leaders in Dublin dominated by how Europe can bolster Ukraine and protect its own security in the US-backed negotiations with Moscow and Kyiv on ending the almost five-year war. "Our principles and our positions in these negotiations remain well known, and our European team will continue to act in close coordination in full unity," Costa told reporters, adding: "Europe's security begins with Ukraine's security" and "Only Ukraine has the legitimacy to decide on matters concerning its territory and sovereignty."

Source: PA Media via Glasgow Times, Nov 13, 2026

Europe's security is not on the table

The leaders also shut the door on a Russian demand. EU leaders said on Friday that Europe's security structure should not be a subject for Ukraine-Russia peace negotiations, Reuters reported from Dublin. The Kremlin said Russia would be open to European countries taking part if it saw they were ready to contribute, but German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called that "the same old game": "There will be no discussions about Ukraine without Ukraine, and no discussions about Europe without Europe. Furthermore, there is no need to talk about European security architecture. We have that already," Merz told reporters.

Source: Reuters, Nov 13, 2026

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Russian calls for discussions about Europe's security architecture risked diverting attention from the need for a ceasefire, Reuters said. Russian officials have called for a broad security agreement before tackling the specifics of the war; before its 2022 invasion, Russia demanded the withdrawal of NATO forces from countries that joined the alliance after 1997, a demand NATO rejected.

Source: Reuters, Nov 13, 2026

Why Europe fought for a seat

European leaders have been concerned that a US-backed process will leave them sidelined and Kyiv vulnerable as Moscow and Washington decide the fate of the conflict, AP reported. Ukraine is reluctant to leave the talks solely in the hands of a US administration that has often seemed to lean toward Moscow's views, while Russia does not want European countries involved in direct negotiations, complaining they are financing and supplying Ukraine's military effort. European leaders also distrust US President Donald Trump to negotiate on their behalf after tense standoffs over trade, Greenland and the conflicts in Iran and Ukraine, AP said.

Source: Associated Press, Nov 13, 2026

"Without Europeans, there is no support for Ukraine," French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday at the European Political Community meeting in Dublin. "There is no more US support. At the end of the day, we will be the ones to define and decide for our future security as Europeans." After that meeting, Macron's office published what he called a "historic declaration" by 40 European nations affirming that "the path to peace in Ukraine should be decided with Ukraine and that any matter affecting European security should be decided with the Europeans."

Source: Associated Press, Nov 13, 2026

Kushner, Zelenskyy — and the fight over one voice

US envoy Jared Kushner and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after meeting in Dublin late on Thursday that Europe would be part of the next round of talks. Zelenskyy said Europe would send a negotiating team, adding, "They will have a voice." Kushner said: "We cannot conclude this deal without the Europeans being at the table," and said Russian President Vladimir Putin "is willing to give it a try." Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov had said on Thursday that Europe must first name a representative, mocking that "the Europeans squabble like spiders in a jar," AP reported.

Source: Associated Press, Nov 13, 2026

The single-envoy idea still had backers. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni argues the absence of a united voice has allowed freelance diplomacy, AP said. Kallas laid claim to the role on Friday, saying member states agreed in June 2024 that she represents Europe in foreign and security policy: "I know that the Russians don't want me, but do we have a say, who is representing Russia? We can't send any person that has no institutional role." Costa answered that representation is "a team effort," noting the US fields two envoys and Ukraine three or four people, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen defended the decision: "To be very clear, we decide on who represents us, and that's what we've done today."

Source: PA Media via Glasgow Times, Nov 13, 2026

Representatives from Britain, France, Germany, Italy and the EU attended the Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi earlier this week, where both Moscow and Kyiv cited some progress though there was no sign of a breakthrough on territory, Reuters said. Kushner said in Moscow on Thursday that he had begun discussions with European partners on the continent's security architecture. With Trump due to head to Beijing next week to meet Putin, Merz said European leaders feared another "Anchorage moment" — the Alaska summit where they were stunned by Trump's overtures to Putin without Ukrainian or European envoys present. "Please, no surprises," Merz said. "Continue to play in team Europe and in the team with Ukraine."

Source: Associated Press, Nov 13, 2026