Europeans should be at talks over Ukraine - French minister

"Europeans shouldn't be absent from the negotiation table," Beaune told TV network CNEWS. France's foreign minister said on Friday that Moscow was trying to bypass the European Union by holding talks directly with Washington over Ukraine.

The European Union should not be excluded from talks on Ukraine, French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said on Sunday, a day before U.S. and Russian diplomats meet in Geneva after weeks of tensions over Russian troop deployments. "Europeans shouldn't be absent from the negotiation table," Beaune told TV network CNEWS.

France's foreign minister said on Friday that Moscow was trying to bypass the European Union by holding talks directly with Washington over Ukraine. Beaune cautioned against what he called falling into Russia's trap.