European leaders: Russia-Ukraine conflict talks without European participation "unacceptable"
European leaders said on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference that talks without European countries and Ukraine were "unacceptable" amid the US push for "unilateral" talks with Russia over the conflict with Ukraine. Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands chairperson Christi Merz told the Munich conference that Europe must be involved in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine and that "it is absolutely unacceptable for Russia and the US to negotiate without Ukraine and European countries". "We cannot discuss or negotiate the future of Ukraine or the European security structure without Europeans," Finnish President Stubb told reporters on the sidelines of the Munich conference. "But Europe needs to come together and talk less and do more."