TIRANA, Nov 12 /ATA/ – Prime Minister Edi Rama said on Thursday that Europe had made a major mistake by focusing solely on military support for Ukraine while failing to keep diplomatic channels open with Russia.
Speaking to reporters upon arrival at the 9th European Political Community (EPC) Summit in Dublin, Ireland, Rama commented on the war in Ukraine and Europe’s response to the conflict.
“The question is not whom we can trust. The question is what is in our best interest as a European community. I believe a major mistake was made by leaving diplomacy in the hands of others and focusing exclusively on military support for Ukraine, which is the right thing to do, but without keeping a channel of dialogue open with Russia,” Rama said.
He argued that Europe’s future was shared with Russia and that all available means, including diplomacy, should be used to address the conflict.
“Whether we like it or not, Russia is not going anywhere. It will remain where it is. The future of the continent is a shared future that we must work towards using all available means. While continuing to support Ukraine, we also need to talk,” he said.
Rama said Europe, rather than the United States, China or India, should take responsibility for engaging Russia diplomatically.
“It is up to Europe to understand the enormous mistake it has made. I represent a country that has no relations with Russia. Since the 1960s, there have been no visits from the Kremlin, and we have never visited the Kremlin. So I feel entirely free to say that, as a European, I am deeply troubled that Europe has relied entirely on weapons rather than diplomacy,” he said.
Rama described the current situation as the cost of that mistake, adding that Europe had effectively outsourced its diplomacy to U.S. President Donald Trump.
“It is not my job to correct the mistakes of the ‘great powers’. They are too powerful to be lectured. The point is that Europe has outsourced its diplomacy to Donald Trump, and this is the result,” he said.
He warned that the cost of Europe’s failure to engage with Russia would continue to rise unless it reconsidered its approach and reopened dialogue while maintaining support for Ukraine.
“Today’s picture shows precisely what we failed to anticipate when all this began. It is never too late to acknowledge mistakes,” Rama added.
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