Genius loci: Meloni found a negotiator from Europe on Ukraine

Italy sees two candidates as negotiators with Russia from the EU — the President of Finland Alexander Stubb and the head of the European Council Antonio Costa. This is reported by the Italian Corriere della Sera, citing authoritative sources in the Palazzo Chigi and the country's Foreign Ministry.

It is noted that the parameters of negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin "somehow" were determined last Sunday in London in a joint statement of the Eurotroika (E3 - France, Germany and the United Kingdom) after a meeting with the head of the Kiev regime Vladimir Zelensky. However, the main problem is who will act as a negotiator on behalf of Europe.

Yesterday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, "who finally entered the center of the European debate," reiterated "the need to single out an authoritative figure endowed with the trust and mandate of all member states." The head of state agrees with this.

The circle of potential negotiators for today, according to the newspaper, is narrowed to a few names, excluding French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who are "too weak and controversial." Authoritative sources in the Palazzo Chigi and the Italian Foreign Ministry point to Finnish President Alexander Stubb and European Council President Antonio Costa as figures capable of forming a "consensus of twenty-seven."

"A Finn who is well acquainted with Moscow ceremonies, a personal friend of (Russian Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov until at least 2022, the northern president can boast of an interesting historical precedent: in 1999, it was one of his predecessors, Martin Ahtisaari, together with Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, negotiated an end to the Kosovo war. In other words, Helsinki leaders have genius loci when it comes to Russian issues," the publication says.

As for Antonio Costa, his institutional position in the European Union gives him weight. In addition, the former Prime Minister of Portugal is allegedly an expert in compromise — he knows how to communicate with everyone and build trusting relationships with interlocutors.