EU's Ashton ready to call special meeting on Iraq, Ukraine

Reuters
Catherine Ashton, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs, listens during a joint news conference in Manila, July 29, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton is ready to call a special foreign ministers' meeting as early as this week and is talking to EU governments about it, a spokesman said on Wednesday. The meeting is expected to cover conflicts in Iraq, Ukraine and Gaza. France and current EU president Italy have been pressing for a special meeting. An Italian foreign ministry source said that a meeting of EU foreign ministers could be called as early as this week, or at the latest on Monday and Tuesday of next week. (Reporting by Adrian Croft in Brussels, Steve Scherer in Rome)