The European Commission has stated that it continues to participate in diplomatic efforts to bring Russia’s war against Ukraine to an end. This was their response to the Kremlin’s statement that EU representatives would not be invited to the forthcoming trilateral talks between Ukraine, the US and Russia, which are tentatively scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi in November.
Paola Pigno, the European Commission’s chief spokesperson, made this statement on 29 October during a briefing in Brussels, in response to a question from a Radio Free Europe correspondent.
“First of all, I don’t think anything has gone wrong. As we have said on numerous occasions, including from this podium, talks take place in various formats, in different locations and at different levels. Sometimes heads of state and government take part, sometimes ministers, and sometimes senior officials,” said Piño.
She emphasised that the European Union has already been involved in the negotiation process and continues to make efforts to bring the war to an end.
“We have been involved and continue to work towards putting an end to this terrible war and achieving a lasting and sustainable peace,” said the European Commission spokesperson.
However, Piño did not confirm whether EU representatives would be present at the next round of trilateral talks:
“As for any possible future meetings, we currently have no further information to share. But the situation could change at any moment.”
On 28 October, Russian Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov told the Russian media that there were no plans to invite representatives from European countries to the forthcoming trilateral talks between Ukraine, the US and Russia, which are tentatively scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi in November.
“They can go there if they buy tickets, but no one is going to invite them to the negotiating table,” said Ushakov.
On 29 October, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov also stated that the trilateral format does not envisage the participation of the European Union. According to him, Moscow does not believe that the EU’s position is aimed at achieving peace.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously said that he was keen for European partners to take part in the talks, particularly in discussions on European security issues.
However, on 28 October at a press conference in the Netherlands, Zelenskyy noted that if the US insists on negotiations solely in a trilateral format, Ukraine will not turn down such an opportunity.
“We will not derail this meeting, because we need to advance the peace process in any format and on any date — as quickly as possible,” said the Ukrainian president.
At the same time, he expressed doubt that Europe’s security architecture could be discussed without the participation of the Europeans themselves.
“Russia wants to negotiate something new – I don’t know what. They’re talking about some sort of security architecture in Europe. But how can one discuss Europe’s security architecture without the Europeans? What are you going to agree on? With whom? With China?” added Zelenskyy.
Representatives of the European Commission recently took part in consultations on ending the war for the first time, including attending meetings in Miami and Oslo.
The next round of talks between Ukraine, the US and Russia is tentatively scheduled to take place from around 6 to 10 November in Abu Dhabi, the Ukrainian president said.