Macinka wants Europe to name a single negotiator with a free mandate for talks with Putin, floats Pavel

In brief

• Czech Foreign Minister Petr Macinka wants Europe to appoint one negotiator with a free mandate for talks with Russia over Ukraine.
• Macinka said President Petr Pavel's name could be considered, but it has not been officially raised.
• Pavel has said he has no ambition to be Europe's negotiator, while a Slovak minister questioned his candidacy.

Macinka's proposal

Czech Foreign Minister Petr Macinka of the Motorists party says Europe should choose one person to speak with Russia about the conflict in Ukraine and give that person a free mandate. (Za Európu by mala s Ruskom rokovať jedna osobnosť s voľným mandátom, vyhlásil Macinka. Nevylúčil ani Pavla – HNonline.sk) (Macinka: Za Evropu by měla s Ruskem jednat jedna osobnost s volným mandátem – Seznam Zprávy) (Macinka navrhuje jednoho vyjednavače Evropy pro jednání s Putinem. Zmínil i Pavla – Aktuálně.cz) He argues that European countries hold different views on how to end Russian aggression, so tying a negotiator to the position of any single state would not work.

Macinka made the remarks on Sunday in a broadcast of CNN Prima News. He said it would be difficult to agree on the exact role such a negotiator would hold, but he hopes Europe can at least decide on a name first and let that person show what they can achieve.

Pavel's possible role

Macinka said that a role for President Pavel would be prestigious for the Czech Republic. He added that Pavel's name has not been officially mentioned in this context. The British outlet The Telegraph reported about two weeks earlier that Pavel could become a negotiator.

The Motorists and Pavel have strained relations. Pavel has said he has no ambition to be Europe's negotiator. Speaking to reporters in Trenčín after a Visegrad Four summit, he said he would be ready to contribute his experience from his time in NATO. Slovak Foreign Minister Blanka Laššáková has also questioned Pavel as a possible negotiator, arguing that a former NATO general could not be sent to Russia. („Do Ruska nemôžete poslať bývalého generála NATO.“ Laššáková spochybnila Pavla ako vyjednávača aj návrat odvlečených detí na Ukrajinu – Pravda.sk)

Context

The debate follows a phone call between the Finnish president and the Norwegian prime minister with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and efforts by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to open a channel to Moscow.