The EU will only talk to Vladimir Putin at the “right moment,” António Costa, the president of the European Council, told reporters on Saturday.
The remarks appeared to clarify comments he made last week, when he said there was “potential” for EU-Russia peace talks and that Ukraine had given the EU its support for engaging in them. The Financial Times framed his remarks as suggesting the EU was preparing for such potential talks.
“We need in the right moment to have talks with Russia to address our common issues with security”, the EU president said on Saturday, repeating something he said as far back as March.
“We don’t want to disturb the initiative led by President Trump,” said Costa at a ‘Europe Day’ celebration in Brussels, describing the EU as waiting but “ready to do what we need to do” regarding Europe’s security.
An EU official said Costa’s comments last Thursday were fully consistent with his previous line. “There will be a moment when…
