Moscow: Russia has downplayed the significance of the diplomatic consultations that European countries and Ukraine are set to hold Wednesday with US President Donald Trump, dismissing them as meaningless. Russia considers this move as insignificant both practically and politically.
According to Qatar News Agency, while Europeans verbally support the US and Russian diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis related to Ukraine, the European Union is in fact undermining them, Russian Foreign Ministry Deputy Spokesperson Alexei Fadeev said.
Fadeev added that the EU's rhetoric about supposed support for peaceful solutions is nothing more than another attempt to block a settlement. He stated that Russia will be watching the moves of European countries involved in the upcoming summit, and hopes they will not take steps that prevent it from being held or from reaching constructive agreements.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and EU leaders are scheduled to hold urgent talks with Trump later today in the hope of persuading him to take Kyiv's interests into account during his upcoming summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
Ahead of these talks, Zelenskyy, who has spoken with more than 30 world leaders in recent days, called for pressure on Russia to achieve a just peace, while EU leaders on Tuesday stressed Ukraine's right to determine its own destiny and the need to prevent changing international borders by force.