On 16 February, two EU leaders called for the appointment of Europe’s special envoy for Ukraine, after the continent was ruled out as a partner in talks with Russia by the US administration on ending the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war.

On the final day of the Munich Security Conference, Finland’s President Alexander Stubb called for rearming Ukraine and intensifying sanctions and asset freezes against Russia to exert maximum pressure on Russia ahead of potential US-led negotiations to end the war, AP says.

Stubb outlined three phases for the peace process: pre-negotiation, ceasefire, and long-term peace negotiation.

“The first phase is the pre-negotiation, and this is a moment when we need to rearm Ukraine and put maximum pressure on Russia, which means sanctions, which means frozen assets, so that Ukraine begins these negotiations from a position of strength,” he said.

The Finnish President suggested creating a role similar to that used during the Kosovo crisis, Reuters reports.

“If I may just throw out one idea loosely, if there is a negotiating table, I think we need to do something similar that was done in Kosovo,” Stubb said, adding: “Europe needs to have a special envoy like Martti Ahtisaari (on Kosovo), and then a deputy envoy who is on the level of … Kellogg…, and in that sense, we get some kind of a skin in the game.”

According to Reuters, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said:

“What we lacked on Ukraine in recent years was one personality highly respected by everyone, taken into account in Moscow, taken into account in Kyiv, and having support in Washington and European capitals and other leaders, including the global South, that could have the authority to manage the peace talks.”

Related:

• Ukraine begins cooperation with Trump’s team on peace efforts, Zelenskyy says
• Rubio and Lavrov hold phone call, but accounts on Ukraine and sanctions differ
• European leaders to hold emergency summit on Ukraine as Trump pushes for talks with Russia
• Politico: Trump officials head to Saudi Arabia for talks with Russia, Ukraine joins as well
• Zelenskyy: We must build Armed Forces of Europe for future to depend only on Europeans
• “Remember Minsk-2.” Europe should stay out of Ukraine peace talks, Kellogg says
• No Munich in Munich: Zelenskyy cozies up with republicans