Belgian FM says normalizing relations with Russia would signal weakness

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot has warned that normalizing relations with Russia would signal weakness.

Prevot said this in an official statement shared with Euractiv, Ukrinform reports.

He stressed that there is a difference between dialogue and normalization.

"Today, Russia refuses a European presence at the table. As long as that is the case, talking about normalization sends a signal of weakness and undermines the European unity we need now more than ever," he said.

His comments come after Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said on Saturday that Europeans should normalize their relationship with the Kremlin and ink a deal to end the war.

Prevot did agree that the EU needed to be part of the talks to end Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine. However, he struck a different tone from the prime minister on the impact of EU sanctions against Russia.

According to Prevot, Europeans must maintain economic pressure on the Kremlin to "create the conditions for a credible negotiation," after De Wever argued sanctions against Russia's regime were ineffective without U.S. backing.

As reported earlier, on March 14, De Wever called on EU member states to authorize the European Union to negotiate with Russia, noting that so far it has been impossible to force Moscow to abandon its war against Ukraine.

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