Europe insists on participating in peace talks between Ukraine and Russia - Barrot

French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot has stated that the European Union should play an active role in future negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. This is reported by Radio France, writes UNN.

Details

"Yesterday in Kyiv, we witnessed a historic moment: a decisive step was taken towards peace in Ukraine," Barrot said. "This unanimous call from Europeans and Ukrainians, with the support of the Americans, for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire from Monday has prompted Vladimir Putin to take a step in the right direction. This is good, and we are ready, starting next Thursday, to start negotiations leading to a lasting peace in Ukraine."

"Yes - to negotiations, but first a ceasefire," Barrot added.

However, he stressed that "for this we need a ceasefire": "We do not negotiate under bombs and drones. The last time we did this was in Istanbul in 2022, it led to failure and did not prevent Vladimir Putin from committing the massacre in Bucha, which horrified the entire planet. So yes, to peace talks, but first a ceasefire."

"If there is no ceasefire, we can count on the Europeans and Americans to increase pressure on Vladimir Putin," the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs said. "We have the opportunity to introduce large-scale sanctions that will have a devastating impact on the Russian economy. The sanctions imposed by Europeans on the Russian economy over the past three years have already cost Vladimir Putin 400 billion euros, or three years of military budget."

Recall

Earlier it was reported that Trump's special representative in Ukraine, Keith Kellogg said that there must be a ceasefire before negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow can begin.