EU to send joint team to Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Abu Dhabi

The EU will send senior officials to US-hosted peace talks between Ukraine and Russia in Abu Dhabi on 10th and 11th of November. The joint team from the European Commission and the European Council will be led by Ursula von der Leyen's Chief of Cabinet, Björn Seibert, and European Council President Antonio Costa's Foreign Policy Advisor, Anna Maria Bauer. We leave Russia's sanctions. France, Germany and the UK will also take part. It remains unclear whether EU officials will meet Russian representatives in person as no face-to-face meeting has been confirmed. The talks will be the first trilateral negotiations since February. The EU's presence follows calls from Italy and Poland for Europe to have a stronger, coordinated role. Von der Leyen backed Zelensky's call for a ceasefire covering food and energy infrastructure and said freedom of navigation in the Black Sea must be restored.