Council President António Costa and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen chaired the extraordinary session on Ukraine, which took place in the margins of Monday's EU-African Union summit in Luanda, Angola. Ten heads of state or government participated in person and the other 17 joined digitally.
At a press conference, steps towards peace were welcomed – but it was emphasized that both the EU and Ukraine must be involved in the negotiations.
For example, serious questions have been raised about reports that the US's original plan included the US and American companies being given responsibility for the majority of the frozen Russian assets in the EU.
It is clear that issues that directly concern the EU – such as sanctions, enlargement or frozen assets – require full EU involvement and decisions, Costa said.
"Ukraine's territory and sovereignty must be respected. Only Ukraine, as an independent country, can make decisions about its armed forces," von der Leyen said.
A clear majority of EU countries hope to agree at the summit on December 18 to use frozen Russian state assets in Belgium for a multi-billion loan for Ukraine.
