Although the stage for talks between Russia and the United States (US) is a major geopolitical arena, many did not expect European leaders as one of the world's major powers to be sidelined again from this historic meeting.
The face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump scheduled to take place in Alaska will soon be the first since Russia's massive invasion of Ukraine.
However, the absence of Europe's top representative at the negotiating table raises questions about the bloc's declining influence in determining the direction of regional security.
European Union (EU) law expert at HEC Paris, Professor Alberto Alemanno, described this situation as evidence that Europe is "caught between a rock and a hard place" because it is too dependent on US security guarantees, but weak in terms of bargaining power to influence the negotiation agenda.
The same view is shared by Bruegel analyst Jacob Kirkegaard, who stated that the weakness of its own defense has caused Europe to lose real power, thus not being invited to such meetings.
Trump previously sparked controversy when he proposed a ceasefire involving a territorial swap between Ukraine and Russia, which was strongly rejected by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders.
In response, the EU held an emergency virtual meeting on Monday to discuss the next steps ahead of the Alaska talks, which are expected to be a pivotal moment in the international security landscape.
However, the question arises whether the meeting will bring about real change or will simply be a meeting without the authority to act that the United States has, given the fact that Europe's influence is no longer on the same level as that of the United States.
