EU Formally Rejects Schröder as Ukraine Peace Mediator

The European Union formally rejected Vladimir Putin's proposal to use former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder as a mediator in Ukraine peace talks. Brussels dismissed the Russian diplomatic maneuver, with EU officials characterizing it as an attempt to use a discredited figure — Schröder is a longtime Putin ally who remained on the boards of Russian state energy companies after the 2022 invasion — to gain a foothold in shaping the peace process. The rejection underscores the EU's determination to maintain a unified stance against Russian attempts to divide Western support for Ukraine.