Merz Sees Positive Signs Russia May Be Ready For Talks Involving Europe

(MENAFN- UkrinForm) The German Chancellor made the remarks to journalists on Thursday ahead of the European Political Community summit in Dublin, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

“I am hearing some positive signals from the talks in Abu Dhabi yesterday and the day before, so we have a chance to achieve a genuine peace settlement in Europe together with the Americans. But there is still a long way to go, and we must travel it together,” Merz said.

The Chancellor expressed cautious optimism about the possibility of Europe being directly involved in negotiations with Russia.

“I note with a certain degree of satisfaction that, apparently, there is growing willingness on the Russian side to acknowledge that Europe cannot be discussed without Europe. And that is, first and foremost, good news. We will see whether this remains the case,” he said.

Merz stressed that the immediate priority was to secure the Russian leadership's agreement to joint negotiations involving all parties concerned.

“First and foremost, I expect the Russian government and the Russian president to finally agree to joint negotiations. Ukraine must be at the table, Europeans must be at the table, Americans must be at the table, and, of course, Russia must be there as well,” the Chancellor said.

Asked who exactly should represent Europe in such negotiations, Merz noted that the EU had established formats for cooperation, while the specific arrangements for representation would be discussed behind closed doors.

In this context, he recalled the E3 format, involving Germany, France and the United Kingdom, as well as the broader E5 format, which also includes Italy and Poland.

“I see no problem with keeping things that way,” Merz said, referring to the possibility of continuing to use these formats.

At the same time, the Chancellor stressed that the question of who would personally represent Europe was not the main issue at this stage.

“This is not about specific individuals at the moment, but about getting Putin to be ready to negotiate,” he emphasized.

Read also: Zelensky hopes U.S. will support a step-by-step approach in peace talks

As Ukrinform reported, talks between Ukraine, the United States and Russia were held in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11 to discuss possible steps toward ending the war. Representatives of European countries took part in consultations but were not direct participants in the trilateral negotiating format.

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