We will have more wars: EU diplomacy chief slams calls to normalize relations with Putin
Photo: Kaja Kallas, EU foreign policy chief (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
The European Union cannot return to normal relations with Russia in its current form. It would only fuel Russia’s appetite, said EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas in an interview with Reuters.
Kallas was commenting on a statement by Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, who claimed that European officials support his idea of normalizing relations with Moscow behind closed doors.
"I've been ... behind those closed doors, when we talk about leaders' meetings, and I don't see this appetite," Kallas said.
According to her, if talks with Russia are to take place, EU countries must first agree on what they would discuss.
"If we just go back to business as usual, we will have more of this - more wars. We have seen this before, so we have to be very vigilant and not to actually give Russia what they want because their appetite will only grow," the EU foreign policy chief stated.
The Belgian Prime Minister’s controversial idea
Earlier, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said that the European Union cannot, without US support, economically strangle Russia or arm Ukraine to the extent that the war would end in Moscow’s defeat.
Therefore, he proposed that the EU strike a deal with Russia, normalizing relations and resuming active imports of Russian energy resources.
The proposal was criticized even by members of Belgium’s ruling coalition. Afterward, De Wever attempted to soften his stance, clarifying that he supports normalizing relations with Moscow only after the end of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
