A more thorough explanation:

POURPARLER

Pourparler is a French verb that means to informally discuss before actual negotiating begins.

• Before the official meeting, the two leaders had a pourparler to discuss their concerns.
• The company's representatives had a pourparler with the union leaders to try to reach a compromise.

These examples illustrate how pourparler is used to describe an informal discussion that takes place before formal negotiations begin. It allows the parties involved to express their concerns and try to find common ground before entering into more structured negotiations.