Merkel’s Call for Putin Talks Meets Opposition From EU Leaders
- German leader’s message coincides with Thursday’s EU summit
- Engagement with Russia stokes tensions among bloc’s members
Journalists watch a broadcast as Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden meet in Geneva on June 16.
Photographer: Stefan Wermuth/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Angela Merkel’s call for the European Union to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin has backing from France but is running into opposition from other leaders from across the bloc
As Merkel arrived in Brussels on Thursday for what could be her final EU summit as chancellor, her proposal was publicly criticized by Mark Rutte of the Netherlands, who told reporters that he wouldn’t attend any talks with Putin. Romania’s Klaus Iohannis said it’s too early to talk about a summit with Russia and Estonia’s Kaja Kallas said she was surprised to discover the issue was even on the agenda.