EU represented by von der Leyen's right-hand at Ukraine peace talks, sources say

BRUSSELS, Belgium — The European Commission is representing the EU at the latest round of Ukraine peace talks on Oct. 9, with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's chief of staff, Bjoern Seibert representing the bloc, diplomatic sources confirmed to the Kyiv Independent.

The question of who represents the EU at peace talks, or if it is even represented at all, has roiled the bloc repeatedly, even as Brussels is clear that Russia is not serious about ending its war of aggression.

President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists on Oct. 8 that the peace talks would include not only Russian and U.S. officials but also Europeans and NATO.

Two EU officials said Seibert would be representing the European Commission at those talks, alongside the National Security Advisers of the E3 countries: France, Germany, and the U.K.

For the Commission, the talks are simply another part of the "constant work with Ukraine to strengthen their position while also trying to secure peace," a senior EU official familiar with the peace talks told the Kyiv Independent.

That's "even more important right now as we are seeing Russia's increasing attacks," the official added.

But the EU has never been able to agree on who has the right to represent it in peace negotiations.

Earlier in 2026, the idea of a dedicated EU peace envoy dominated discussions in Brussels, driven by speculative reporting from the EU's main media outlets.

There was a debate over whether the EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, should take on the role or for EU countries to pick a specific representative.

Then it transpired that Pedro Lourtie, the chief of staff of European Council President Antonio Costa, had opened a diplomatic backchannel to Moscow without first telling all EU countries, to which several countries have told the Kyiv Independent they took offense.

And then some EU countries objected strongly to the idea that the E3 countries could represent the bloc in peace talks, partly because France and Germany were too lax with Russia in the past, and partly because the U.K. is not even a member country of the bloc.

Seibert, representing the EU, might similarly receive some blowback from national capitals.

Diplomats from three EU countries confirmed to the Kyiv Independent that they were unaware of Seibert's role as a representative.

And the idea of von der Leyen and her chief of staff concentrating power around themselves is an oft-repeated topic on the Brussels media scene, and beyond.

However, the senior EU official aware of the peace talks notes that "there is no set way this works, it's rather ad hoc how these things happen both with Ukraine and the U.S."

And Seibert "frequently debriefs to ambassadors," they added.

Separately, another high-ranking EU official described a format that is "a little bit established" for peace talks during a briefing with journalists.

"That's now being, again, replicated in Miami as we speak," they said.

And at least one national diplomat does not see Seibert participating in the talks as a problem at all, believing that U.S. President Donald Trump has a positive view of von der Leyen.

"Kallas has done a great job being vocal about the right things, and she is doing a great job, but in difficult negotiations, you have to choose your negotiator to match the other side," the diplomat told the Kyiv Independent.