EU leaders reject making European security a subject of peace talks

Merz and EU officials push back against Kremlin overtures, insisting Europe's security architecture is non-negotiable.

EU leaders reject making European security a subject of peace talks — EU leaders said on Friday that Europe's security structure should not be a subject for Ukraine-Russia peace negotiations. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz described the Kremlin's comments as "the same old game" — a clear signal that Brussels sees Moscow's openness to European participation as a tactical maneuver, not a concession. "There will be no discussions about Ukraine without Ukraine, and no discussions about Europe without Europe," Merz told reporters, adding that there is "no need to talk about European security architecture. We have that already." The Kremlin had said on Friday that Russia would be open to European countries taking part in peace talks if it saw they were ready to contribute to the peace process. The EU's rejection closes off one potential avenue for Moscow to divide the transatlantic alliance, but it also leaves open the question of what role Europe can play in ending the war. The Kremlin's conditional offer may have been designed to test European cohesion — and the EU's response suggests the test was failed from Moscow's perspective. Separately, the IAEA raised alarm on Friday over an uninspected Iranian uranium enrichment plant at Isfahan.[^1] In a confidential report to member states, the agency said it is "increasingly concerned" about the underground Isfahan Fuel Enrichment Plant (IFEP), which Iran declared last year but has not allowed the watchdog to inspect.[^1] The IAEA's warning comes as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sharply attacked the Iranian leadership in a CNBC interview, saying: "May Iran's leaders go to hell."[^2] Bessent also claimed the American economic pressure campaign against Iran, dubbed "Operation Economic Exile," is succeeding.[^2] The combination of diplomatic isolation, economic pressure, and nuclear ambiguity suggests a coordinated Western strategy — but one that relies on Iran's compliance, which has so far been withheld. Eisenkot publishes post detailing emergency government efforts — Gadi Eisenkot published a long social media post today (Friday) detailing his efforts to form an emergency government under his leadership, referr