“The Europeans will be represented and France will be in Abu Dhabi to participate in these talks,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told RTL radio.
His comment came after President Donald Trump stoked fears of a US pivot towards the Kremlin by predicting a “very big” deal with Russia involving not only the Ukraine war but “all of Europe”.
Up to now, the talks scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday had been framed as a trilateral format at the level of officials, not leaders, from Ukraine, Russia and the United States.
The identities of who would take part have not been made public.
Although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has made it clear that he wants involvement from European allies in the process, Russia has suggested there would be no place for European representatives at the table.
Barrot said that, in the past, “there have been discussions, sometimes without the Europeans and sometimes with” but “this time they will participate”.
He said: “France will be there and will ensure that Europe’s voice is heard.”
On Thursday, US, European, Ukrainian and Nato officials met in Brussels ahead of the Abu Dhabi talks.
A Nato spokeswoman said they “sought to advance a just and sustainable end to the war in Ukraine”.
Jared Kushner, the US president’s envoy and son-in-law, participated in the Brussels meeting by videolink. He said the United States was working on “a broader European security architecture that can help establish the conditions for lasting peace”.
The American approach is being treated warily by European allies, which have long rejected Moscow’s desire to rewrite the European security architecture.
Before launching the war in Ukraine in 2022, the Kremlin delivered an ultimatum to Nato which included a demand that the alliance’s troops be withdrawn from eastern Europe.
That was rejected by the Western military alliance.
Kushner on Thursday said that Washington will “consult closely with our European partners on the sidelines” of the Abu Dhabi talks and “if progress is made, aim to move toward a broader multilateral format with their direct participation”. (AFP)