European Council President Antonio Costa said that Ukraine's EU membership process must advance and Europe must be part of future peace talks together with Ukraine, Russia and the United States, reports "Reuters".
He briefed Council members on yesterday's summit in Washington via video call from Lisbon. He then said that although there is a lot of work to be done and there are no guarantees of success, the very possibility of a bilateral meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin is "huge progress".
"Now we all need to turn this opportunity into a reality so that the meeting can take place and be successful", Kostya stressed, calling for broader talks with the participation of Europe "as soon as possible".
He also pointed to Washington's readiness to participate in security guarantees for Ukraine as "particularly important".
"The basis for future guarantees is the armed forces of Ukraine itself, whose capacity must be strengthened," Kostya said, adding that Ukraine's future lies not only in security measures, but also in the prospects for stability and prosperity that EU membership will bring.
In the meantime, the bloc will continued its pressure on Russia to stop the war and is preparing a new package of sanctions, Costa assured.