The document, circulated by the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, is described by officials as a “discussion paper” for member states rather than a negotiating mandate. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), which said it had seen the text, reported that EU ambassadors discussed it on 17 February and that it could feature at the Foreign Affairs Council meeting on 23 February in Brussels.
A bid to define EU conditions
According to RFE/RL, the paper is titled European Core Interests in Ensuring a Comprehensive, Just and Lasting Peace and Continent’s Security and argues that peace and security on the continent cannot be achieved “without the EU at the negotiating table” and without regard to “the EU’s core interests”. The framing reflects a broader European concern that negotiations mediated by the United States have proceeded without the EU or its member states being formally represented, despite the bloc’s central role in financial support for Ukraine.
A senior EU diplomat quoted by RFE/RL characterised the approach as mirroring what they called “Russian maximalists’ demands on Ukraine”. Another official told the outlet that the question of ending the war “isn’t all about Ukraine conceding”, and that Europe needs a clearer position on what Russia must do before any diplomatic engagement.
Troop reductions and non-recognition of occupied territory
RFE/RL reports that the paper’s first chapter, focused on respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, links any Ukrainian constraints on troop numbers to reciprocal limits on Russia. It also calls for no “de jure” recognition of occupied Ukrainian territories and for demilitarisation of those areas.
A second chapter, described as dealing with a “secure and stable Europe”, is reported to include demands that Russia cease disinformation campaigns, sabotage, cyber-attacks, airspace violations and election interference in EU territory and neighbouring states.
Russian forces in neighbouring countries
One of the most politically sensitive sections outlined by RFE/RL concerns Russia’s military presence outside Ukraine. The document is said to call for “no nuclear weapons in Belarus” and for a “ban of Russian military presence and deployments in Belarus, Ukraine, Republic of Moldova, Georgia and Armenia”. RFE/RL notes that Russian forces have long been stationed in breakaway regions such as Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia and Transdniester in Moldova, and that Russia maintains military bases and deployments in Belarus and Armenia.
If adopted as a shared EU position, the inclusion of these theatres would broaden the concept of a Ukraine peace settlement into a wider security reset in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus. It would also introduce questions that are not directly linked to the battlefield in Ukraine but to Russia’s longer-standing military posture across the post-Soviet space.
International law, war crimes and investigations
RFE/RL says the paper demands adherence to international law, including no blanket amnesties for war crimes and access for international investigators to sites of suspected war crimes. It also states that domestic Russian law should not be placed above international treaty obligations.
Reparations and frozen assets
On reparations, the text reportedly states that Russia “must compensate and contribute to Ukraine’s reconstruction”, and also cover damages to European states and European companies, as well as ecological damage. RFE/RL points to the EU’s holding of roughly €210 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets, noting that member states have not agreed on a legal method to confiscate them, though windfall profits from the assets have been channelled to Kyiv.
Separately, Kallas said she would propose a list of concessions that Europe should demand from Russia, citing in general terms the return of Ukrainian children and limitations on Russian armed forces, while also noting the leverage represented by frozen assets held in Europe.
Domestic political demands in Russia
The final cluster of demands described by RFE/RL concerns internal Russian politics. The paper is reported to call for free and fair elections with international monitoring, the release of political prisoners, media freedom, repeal of the “foreign agent” law, and an end to measures described as “historical falsification” and other laws restricting dissent and independent media. It also calls for “full cooperation” in investigations into the killings of opposition figures Aleksei Navalny and Boris Nemtsov.
Limits of leverage
The paper’s immediate significance is likely to be internal: a test of whether EU member states can converge on a detailed set of conditions while the principal diplomatic channel remains US-mediated. Even if capitals endorse only parts of the text, it would provide a basis for European messaging on what a settlement must include from Moscow, not only from Kyiv.
It also underlines a broader strategic question that has shadowed the talks: how far the EU can influence terms that affect European security when it is not formally represented, and whether shared EU positions can translate into leverage at the negotiating table.
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