PARIS(National Times)- The top diplomats of G7 began a two-day meeting in Paris on Monday with European foreign ministers set to press US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to ensure any settlement in the war with Russia is fair to Ukraine and steer clear of any new escalation with Iran.
The meeting of ministers from the leading industrialised nations of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States provides Europe and its allies with a chance to air concerns with their US counterpart.
The meeting coincides with US-mediated talks with Moscow and Kyiv in Abu Dhabi, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, on ending the Ukraine war.
The ministerial meeting, one of the final acts of the French G7 presidency, had been scheduled to be held in the southern port city of Marseille.
But at the last minute the event was moved to Paris, with only scheduling reasons given for the change. “Welcome to Marseille,” said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in his opening remarks to fellow ministers before correcting himself to laughter.
Europe is concerned that Kyiv risks being forced to accept disadvantageous conditions and that the United States could offer Russia new security guarantees over the heads of the Europeans.
“For Europe, it is clear: we do not need to establish a new security architecture for Europe,” said German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul as he headed to the talks, adding Europe “must have a place at the table”.
US eyes Ukraine deal
The French foreign minister said on Sunday that Europeans would be represented at the Abu Dhabi talks, with France also participating.
Trump stoked fears of a US pivot toward the Kremlin by predicting a “very big” deal with Russia involving not only Ukraine but “all of Europe”.
But before leaving for Paris, Rubio said the post-war security infrastructure of Europe is “one of the key topics that’s been raised repeatedly in every conversation any time negotiations have been discussed”.
“We obviously have to get past the conflict to get to that point,” he noted.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga will be joining the talks in Paris on Tuesday for a session on Ukraine.
He wrote on X that his focus would be on “steps toward de-escalation and peace, stronger protection of Ukrainian skies, more pressure on the aggressor, and freedom of navigation in the Black Sea”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had spoken with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen to coordinate positions with the bloc ahead of the talks in Abu Dhabi.
