The informal meeting of the European Union foreign ministers (Gymniche) kicked off on Thursday in the Belgian capital, Brussels, to assess international developments and events, with meetings being held, some of which will be attended by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

Foreign ministers met in Brussels, chaired by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, to hold consultations on agenda items such as developments in Ukraine and the Middle East.

During the meeting, Borrell made statements to the press together with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Borrell said in his speech that €1.4 billion of Russian assets frozen under EU sanctions against Russia were sent to Ukraine and countries that support it militarily.

He noted that this is the first time such a direct step has been taken to increase Ukraine's defence capabilities.

Borrell said that providing air defence equipment to Ukraine remains a priority, stressing that Kuleba will ask for permission to use Western countries' weapons against "legitimate targets" inside Russia, and that these restrictions should be lifted.

Reminding that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will also attend the meeting, Borrell said: "It is important for Turkey to understand the role of the European Union regarding the position of the (Greek) Cypriot administration, which is an EU member state."

"We believe that the best way to resolve this situation is through dialogue, and I thank everyone who allowed me to take this decision and invite the Turkish Minister (Fidan), as he will hold bilateral meetings with some ministers and this meeting will be important to address issues related to the European Union and some member states, and I hope that this will be a good initiative for Turkey," he added.

The Gymnich meetings, a consultative platform for developing a common opinion and strategy among member states without taking decisions, are held in the capital of the country holding the presidency of the Council of the European Union every 6 months.

Asked about moving the meeting from Budapest, the capital of Hungary, which holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, to Brussels, Borrell replied: "I decided that because I think Brussels is the most appropriate at the moment. Some Hungarian positions directly relate to the common foreign policy and are against our policy."

It is noteworthy that Borrell announced that he would move the meeting to Brussels instead of the Hungarian capital, Budapest, in denunciation of the visit of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to Moscow on the fifth day of his country's presidency of the Union in early July, and his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.