EU leaders in Dublin wrestle with who speaks for Europe at the Ukraine table

Dublin’s Convention Centre hosted a second day of high-stakes diplomacy on Friday as the 27 EU leaders met for an informal European Council, a day after 50 heads of state and government gathered for the European Political Community summit. The question hanging over the room was a simple one with no easy answer, which is who gets to speak for Europe when the future of Ukraine is decided.

The groundwork was laid late on Thursday night, well away from the cameras.

A plane carrying US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner landed at Baldonnel Aerodrome shortly before 9pm, straight from a meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow. They sat down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for just under an hour.

Zelensky emerged saying Russia had accepted a major prisoner exchange, which he described as a real result, and told reporters the Americans had made progress on securing European representation at next week’s negotiations. “They will have a voice,” he said, in remarks reported by the Irish Examiner.

Kushner was blunt about why that matters, telling reporters the deal cannot be concluded without Europe at the table. irishexaminer

Europe demands a say on its own security

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife First Lady Olena Zelenska made a visit to the Áras an Uachtaráin to met with President of Ireland Catherine Connolly.

The Ukrainian leader also used the EPC stage to warn that Washington and Moscow may be sketching out something broader than a ceasefire.

He told the summit the discussions were drifting toward a new security framework between Europe and Russia, and said Europe needed to pay close attention while more details emerged.

The response came in writing. Forty-three countries signed a declaration on the key principles for the future of European security, stressing that any matter touching European security must be decided by Europeans, and underlining the need for robust and credible guarantees for Ukraine. euronews

Taoiseach Micheál Martin, chairing the proceedings as host, said leaders had reaffirmed their unwavering support for the people of Ukraine and argued that neither Washington nor Moscow can make progress on European security without European input. 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin.

The name game begins

That leaves the awkward part, which is choosing a name.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was the first to press the issue, warning that a patchwork of competing formats risks undermining Europe’s credibility.

“We need to identify who should represent European interests and with which mandate,” she told reporters ahead of the summit, according to Euronews. 

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Ireland's Taoiseach Micheal Martin.

Luxembourg’s Luc Frieden offered the obvious answer, saying heads of government already have a representative in European Council President António Costa. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has also pitched herself for the role, though some leaders view her as too hawkish on Russia for the job.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, meanwhile, played the whole thing down, saying he does not feel Poland is suffering from any lack of participation.

If no decision lands in Dublin, it rolls into the special European Council on November 26 and 27, which already has the EU budget and Ukraine financing on its plate. 

The AI summit that got away

Friday was meant to be the first European Council dedicated to artificial intelligence. Costa had invited Mistral chief executive Arthur Mensch and Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton, often called the godfather of AI, to talk through the risks and the opportunities. RTÉ reported that leaders were still due to hear from Hinton.

António Luís Santos da Costa GCC GCIH who is a Portuguese lawyer and politician and president of the European Council with Taoiseach and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin.

There were absences, too. Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten and Belgium’s Bart De Wever both stayed home because of domestic trouble, handing Frieden a mandate to speak for Benelux, while Spain’s Pedro Sánchez is campaigning ahead of a snap election on November 29. 

Martin shuts down the leadership chatter

Closer to home, the Taoiseach spent his arrival answering a very different question.

Martin had stirred his parliamentary party on Thursday by declining to commit to leading Fianna Fáil into the next general election, fueling talk that he might step aside around the time the Taoiseach’s office rotates to Fine Gael.

“That’s rubbish,” he told reporters outside the summit, as reported by RTÉ, before confirming he will contest the next election and lead his party into the campaign. rte

The Cork South Central TD, first elected in 1989, said he expects no leadership challenge and described the mood in the parliamentary party as good. An election is due by 2029 at the latest.

Two years in the planning, Ireland’s turn in the chair has delivered a summit nobody could have scripted.