EU-Russia Negotiations As Early As End of May? Europeans Have One "Obvious" Condition for Moscow
European Union countries will hold their first talks on the possibility of negotiations with Russia during an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Cyprus to be held on May 27 and 28, TASS reports, citing a diplomatic source in Brussels.
TL;DR
- EU foreign ministers will hold initial talks on potential negotiations with Russia on May 27-28 in Cyprus.
- The meeting will focus on a list of "European conditions" for starting negotiations.
- An immediate and lasting ceasefire is presented as an obvious prerequisite by a diplomat.
- No decisions are expected at this first informal meeting; discussions will continue in June.
- European Council President Charles Michel confirmed leaders are preparing potential talks with Putin and that Ukraine's President Zelensky supports this.
- Some EU leaders have raised the possibility of opening communication channels with the Kremlin, but consensus on who should speak for the bloc and the stance towards Putin is lacking.