Estonian President says Europe has missed best chance for peace talks with russia in 2022

Estonian President Alar Karis stated that European leaders made a strategic mistake by failing to initiate peace talks with Russia at the outset of the full-scale war. He made this statement in an interview with Yle.

According to the Estonian leader, this opportunity arose in the spring of 2022.

"When Russian troops were pushed back from the outskirts of Kyiv to a point quite close to Russian territory, Europe had the opportunity to bring the aggressor to the negotiating table. Now no one is sitting down at the negotiating table. Europe missed its best chance to bring the aggressor to the negotiating table when the situation on the front lines was most favorable for diplomatic pressure," Karis stated, calling the delay at that time a serious miscalculation.

Now the Estonian president insists that European countries must urgently develop a strategy not only for future negotiations but also for the period after the end of hostilities.

"The European Union has invested a great deal in Ukraine. It cannot be the case that when the time comes, the United States, Russia, and perhaps some third country will be at the negotiating table, while Europe is completely absent," he noted.

Regarding future coexistence with the aggressor, Caris takes a pragmatic view, believing that relations will remain tense for a long time to come. However, he drew a parallel with German history, noting that “the most important thing is for Russia to change.” He recalled that Nazi Germany was also an aggressor state, but after the leadership was punished, the country transformed.

"In less than ten years, it joined NATO and the European Union," Alar Karis concluded, adding that this path is the only option for lasting peace in the future.

It should be noted that the Baltic states have denied providing their territory to Ukraine for strikes against russia.