E3 Group Revives Format to Coordinate Ukraine Negotiation Strategy with Kyiv
Britain, France and Germany have revived the E3 format to coordinate a joint negotiation strategy with Ukraine, sending a unified message to Moscow. The move comes after Europe was sidelined during earlier US-Russia bilateral talks under President Donald Trump. The E3 group, previously used in Iran negotiations, aims to ensure that when diplomacy begins, Russian President Vladimir Putin knows he must deal with Europe as well as Washington.
Britain, France and Germany have revived the E3 format to coordinate a joint Ukraine negotiation strategy with Kyiv, sending a unified message to Moscow, according to officials familiar with the move. The three European powers, acting together with Ukraine, transmitted a joint negotiation message to the Kremlin, aiming to ensure that Russian President Vladimir Putin knows whom he can respond to when diplomacy begins.
The E3 group, previously used in Iran negotiations, is described as "diplomatically more effective" than the European Union alone for this purpose, even though the EU remains essential for economic support and Ukraine's integration perspective. The revival comes after Europe was sidelined during earlier US-Russia bilateral talks under President Donald Trump, when Ukraine was treated as a "plaything" of the two powers, according to European officials.
The danger for Ukraine's freedom was averted last year in part because Europe, including the UK, pushed back against that dynamic. The E3 format now aims to ensure that the interlocutor for Moscow is not (only) the man in Washington. "Europe must be concerned that the interlocutor is not (only) the man in Washington," one European diplomat said. "Eventually Putin will have to know whom he can respond to."