NATO will send its representative to the talks between the United States, Russia, and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi. This was reported by Euronews, citing a NATO representative, reports UNN.
Details
According to a NATO representative, the Alliance will be represented in Abu Dhabi by Chief of Staff Jeffrey van Leeuwen.
Representatives of the European Union will also be present at the meeting. According to the publication, it will be led by Björn Seibert, Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Commission, and Anna-Maria Buric, chief foreign policy adviser to António Costa, President of the European Council.
The publication adds that both institutions have expressed their readiness for direct communication with the Russian delegation—a step they had not previously taken in the context of these peace talks.
However, it is currently unknown whether such an in-person meeting will take place.
Addendum
Last week, U.S. Special Envoy Jared Kushner said that a multilateral format would be organized "if progress is achieved," although he did not specify whether he meant Abu Dhabi or another location at a later time.
A lengthy post published by Kushner on social media, outlining principles for reshaping Europe's security architecture after the war, drew criticism from allies; in particular, Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the proposals "dangerous." European officials consider such a discussion premature and misguided, given that Russia has still made no concessions at the negotiating table. "Defining any European security system is the prerogative of the European Union, as this falls within its area of competence and directly concerns EU security," Paula Pinho, the European Commission's chief spokesperson, said on Monday afternoon.
"Therefore, the EU must be present in such discussions."
Information about the formation of a joint group emerged after Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni sent Costa a sharp letter, in which she complained about the "mess" in diplomatic formats and demanded the appointment of a special European envoy.
In his response, Costa agreed to put the issue up for discussion during an informal summit in Dublin (Ireland), which will take place this week—immediately after the meeting in Abu Dhabi.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski supported Meloni's position and emphasized the need to take the interests of Eastern European countries into account.
"The last thing we want is for Western Europe to conduct business with Russia while ignoring the interests of Eastern European countries," Sikorski said while in Warsaw.
The talks in Abu Dhabi will resume the trilateral peace negotiations that were suspended in February, when the war with Iran forced Washington to sharply change its priorities.
The Ukrainian delegation will be led by the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service, Rustem Umerov, the Head of the Office of the President and his deputy—Kyrylo Budanov and Serhii Kyslytsia—as well as the leader of the ruling party in parliament, Davyd Arakhamia.
The Russian delegation will include Russian President Vladimir Putin's aide Vladimir Medinsky, as well as Deputy Foreign Ministers Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin.
The United States will be represented by Special Envoys Steve Witkoff and Kushner.