European leaders used a Dublin summit to press for a role in U.S.-backed Russia-Ukraine talks, while concern over reported hoaxes and cyberattacks raised questions about protecting democratic institutions.
More than 40 European countries sent leaders to Dublin Thursday for the European Political Community (EPC) summit. The regional forum dates to 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The EPC meets twice a year; the Dublin session brought together national leaders and senior officials to discuss the continent's security.
A key diplomatic question was how Europe would take part in future negotiations to end the war. Calls from Washington and Kyiv for European involvement had put the idea on the agenda, but no European representative had been named by the summit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for European governments to play a regular part in the talks. EconoTimes previously covered his call for Europe to have a regular role in peace negotiations.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham co-chaired a session on Ukraine with Zelenskyy. Burnham said he would press for Europe to be included in U.S.-brokered discussions and pledged “complete support” for Zelenskyy.
Security threats formed the other major strand of the Dublin agenda. Al Jazeera reported recent hoaxes and cyberattacks involving schools and media outlets, as well as supermarkets, blood banks and passenger airlines.
Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said the attackers sought to “create confusion, sow division and weaken public confidence” in democratic institutions. He urged governments to share their experience through forums such as the EPC and said, “We will not allow them to succeed.”
Al Jazeera placed the summit amid wider political shifts in Europe and the United States. The outlet reported that U.S. Republicans suffered broad losses in the midterm elections the previous week, while populist leaders had recently left office in Serbia and Hungary and far-right parties had gained ground in German regional elections. Elections were approaching in Spain, France, Italy and Poland, the outlet said.
