In Abu Dhabi, Ukrainian negotiators met with US envoys and representatives of the European Union and NATO, ahead of the start of talks with Russia to end more than four years of war.
"Present at the first meeting were representatives of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, NATO, and the European Commission, along with US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner," Kiev's chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, stated on social media. "We will align our positions and coordinate our moves ahead of the next phase of negotiations," he added.
The negotiations on Ukraine "increasingly touch upon the security of the entire continent. Many elements of a comprehensive agreement depend on European decisions: security guarantees, reconstruction, sanctions, and Ukraine's European path. This is why Europe must speak with one voice and provide itself with a clear and shared mandate." These are the words of sources at Palazzo Chigi after the start of talks in Abu Dhabi.
This, the same sources explain, is what Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni requested in her letter to President Antonio Costa: to discuss the issue at the informal European Council in Dublin, with a view to reaching a decision at the European Council in December. Palazzo Chigi welcomes Costa's willingness to follow up on the request and pursue the matter.
(Unioneonline)
