Paris (France) (AFP) – G7 top diplomats on Monday began a two-day meeting in Paris, 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.
Russia’s war against Ukraine, following the February 2022 full-scale invasion of its neighbour, is grinding towards its fifth anniversary. Washington is still not ruling out new attacks against Iran, even after the defeat of President Donald Trump’s Republicans in last week’s midterm elections. The meeting coincides with US-mediated talks with Moscow and Kyiv in Abu Dhabi, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, on ending the Ukraine war.
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”.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot 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 for a session on Ukraine on Tuesday. 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 on Monday he had spoken with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen to coordinate positions with the bloc ahead of the talks in Abu Dhabi.
On the sidelines of the Paris meeting, G7 member Canada on Monday announced fresh sanctions on Russia. It added 38 entities and 24 individuals to its list of over 3,500 sanctioned targets “to further reduce Russia’s military capabilities”.
On Iran, Trump has not ruled out new strikes, including at so-called Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected nuclear site that Tehran denies is such a facility. Europeans, however, are eager to see a resolution and shipping traffic return to normal in the Strait of Hormuz energy transit hub. Trump allayed some fears by telling CNN it was “highly unlikely” that fighting would resume. “We certainly cannot afford any military escalation at this point,” said Wadephul, adding the G7 talks would “focus on identifying ways to ensure it is indeed avoided”.
Rubio warned, however, that there had been “no progress” in talks with Iran, whose demands he said were “simply not just unacceptable but, in some cases, outrageous and ridiculous and really not realistic”.
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 Barrot in his opening remarks to fellow ministers before correcting himself to laughter. The visit by Rubio—seen by US media as a potential candidate to succeed Trump—is his first abroad since the midterms. Washington will take over the G7 presidency from France in 2027.
© 2024 AFP
