European powers are exploring ways to bring Russia back to the negotiating table, but any diplomatic initiative must keep Ukraine in control of its own future, an analyst has warned. Philippe Dickinson, deputy director with the Transatlantic Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, told TVP World that any European effort must support Kyiv’s objectives, not pressure Ukraine into concessions. Germany, France and the United Kingdom are reportedly working with Ukrainian officials on possible talks involving Moscow. Dickinson said Europe’s role should be to provide Ukraine with “diplomatic, political, military, economic support” while keeping Kyiv at the center of any settlement. Putin ‘not to be trusted’ Dickinson dismissed suggestions that Vladimir Putin could be relied upon to negotiate in good faith, especially after comments from the Russian leader suggesting Ukraine should make “sacrifices.” “That is patently offensive because Ukraine has been doing nothing but sacrificing for the last four and a bit years,” he said. Dickinson said Putin could only be forced into a durable and fair negotiation through “unity, strength, force,” adding that the Russian leader should not be allowed to set the terms of the talks. EU path gains momentum Dickinson also welcomed reports that EU member states had greenlit the opening of the first negotiation cluster in Ukraine’s accession process, saying EU integration would make Ukraine “a harder target to attack.” Asked whether US nuclear deterrence could one day be expanded along NATO’s eastern flank, including Poland or the Baltic states, Dickinson said Europe should no longer rule out ideas once seen as “geopolitically impossible.” “We have learned in recent years that things previously thought of as unimaginable are happening more and more,” he said.
