French foreign minister says Europe will have a seat at Abu Dhabi Ukraine peace talks
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French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Europe will be represented at the U.S.-mediated Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi, though the delegates have not yet been named, as European officials push to avoid being sidelined in decisions about the continent’s future.
Paris and the broader European Union will take part in the upcoming U.S.-brokered peace talks between Ukraine and Russia in Abu Dhabi, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told radio RTL on Sunday. Barrot said France will be present at the table and that "the Europeans will be well represented," but he did not disclose which officials will attend.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff announced on Monday that the trilateral talks involving Washington, Kyiv and Moscow are scheduled for Nov. 10-11, marking the first such meeting since a summit in February. The extent of European participation remains to be clarified, underscoring how Europe is again being forced to fight for a voice in a process that will shape its own security.
Barrot added that European leaders have recently voiced their expectations to the American mediator, emphasizing that any discussion about the continent's future must consider those demands. European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho said the EU has not yet finalized details on its representation, noting that decisions on security matters rest with the Union rather than being dictated from outside.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has urged European Council President António Costa to resolve the representation issue, and Costa is set to place the topic on the agenda of the Nov. 13 EU leaders’ summit. The call follows recent contacts by Finland’s Alexander Stubb and Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Separately, the European Commission hosted a meeting on Ukraine’s reconstruction on Wednesday, involving officials from Ukraine, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, NATO and the World Bank.
U.S. President Donald Trump, speaking after a meeting with Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev, said a "big, beautiful agreement" is forthcoming and suggested it could involve all of Europe. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas responded that existing European security structures, including NATO and the EU, must continue to integrate Ukraine and warned that Russia’s actions undermine treaty obligations.