Russia and Europe held new round of secret talks on Ukraine — Bloomberg

Bloomberg reports on a new secret meeting between European and Russian representatives focused on settling the war in Ukraine.

The meeting took place last month, but neither the Kremlin nor the European countries involved have confirmed that it took place.

On the European side, the talks involved former senior officials from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. Bloomberg specifically names former UK National Security Adviser Tim Barrow, former German State Secretary Markus Ederer, and experienced French diplomat Pierre Vimont. The sources did not reveal who represented the Russian side.

Bloomberg itself describes this type of format as follows:

“It is not uncommon for former officials and think tanks to engage in informal diplomatic efforts outside of governments to explore potential paths to resolving complex international problems. Such meetings are most often private initiatives without an official mandate and take place in the format of expert discussions. These so-called Track 2 meetings are aimed at exchanging ideas that can subsequently be passed on through government channels.”

This is not the first such instance. In July, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev reported on a meeting held in his country between representatives of Germany and Russia, also on the topic of ending the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry responded to the information about such contacts with restraint. Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi stated that such meetings have “close to zero” significance for ending the war, and stressed that the Ukrainian side had not authorized Germany to hold them.