The European Foreign Ministers will meet on Monday 13 May, before being joined the next day by their Defence counterparts, who will then take over for a meeting in ‘Defence’ format. In parallel, Member States and six non-Member States will celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Eastern Partnership.
Foreign Affairs Council
Libya. On Monday 13 May, the heads of diplomacy will discuss Libya, a subject they already discussed at their Council meeting on 8 April.
They will start with an exchange of views with the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, Ghassan Salamé, and then discuss the situation before adopting a joint statement.
The debate is expected to focus on recent developments in the country, with fighting around Tripoli (see EUROPE 12235/13) blocking the political process. The conflict is endangering the local population, but also thousands of migrants trapped in the country.
Prime Minister Fayez el Sarraj, who is also scheduled to meet with the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on Monday, has just conducted a tour of European capitals.
According to one European source, the purpose of the debate will be both to remind the EU of its support for Mr Salamé, to call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire for stakeholders to return to the negotiating table and to encourage the combat parties to dissociate themselves from terrorist groups.
The ministerial declaration should set out these three points and revert to General Haftar's attack on the Libyan National Army, even if he should not be specifically named.
Venezuela. The Council should also quickly return to the situation in Venezuela. The International Contact Group, in which eight Member States participate, wishes to send a mission to the site. The initiative was reportedly accepted by both parties, while the vice is tightening around the President of the National Assembly, Juan Guaidó, with the arrest of several of his close collaborators (see EUROPE 12251/11).
Asked about the adoption of new sanctions, a European source said on Friday that “Europeans would consider alternative solutions” if “things were not getting better on the ground, if the dialogue was broken, if it was impossible to move forward any further”. However, priority is currently being given to the work of the contact group.
The Council is expected to adopt, without debate, conclusions responding to the recent European strategy for relations between the EU and Latin American and Caribbean countries unveiled by the Commission (see EUROPE 12237/25).
Ukraine. Ministers could also discuss the Russian decision to facilitate the acquisition of Russian citizenship in certain areas of the Ukrainian Donbass (see EUROPE 12242/2).
The Council should also decide, without discussion, to extend the mandate of the European Union Advisory Mission (EUAM) in Ukraine for a further two years, until 31 May 2021 (see EUROPE 12246/29).
Iran. The Iranian decision to release itself from certain commitments under the nuclear agreement should also be invited to the ministerial table (see EUROPE 12251/9).
Asked about possible sanctions, one diplomat said the EU would judge on actions, not words. “We'll see what the IAEA report says at the end of the month”, he explained, adding that there were “statements, but for the moment, no violations on the ground. If it is proven that Iran is in violation of the agreement, there will be consequences that can be addressed through sanctions”, he warned. A meeting between the ministers of the E3 group and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy should be held in the margins of the Council.
In addition, the American decision not to extend the European exemptions to the Helms-Burton Act on Cuba could be mentioned at the Council (see EUROPE 12246/7), as could the latest meetings with the Balkan countries or the situation in Sudan.
Sahel. Ministers will then hold further discussions on the Sahel, in order to prepare for the debate scheduled for the following day with EU Defence Ministers and Foreign and Defence Ministers of the G5 Sahel countries (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger).
They are expected to adopt conclusions on the situation in the region, which will recall that the Sahel is a “strategic priority” for the EU and Member States. The EU is the region's main partner in terms of security and development.
The Sahel will be the common thread of the week, as it will be discussed at the Development Council on Thursday 16 May, in particular on how to strengthen the EU's long-term relationship with the region, and on the support the Union is giving it.
On the ground, the security situation is deteriorating. Several countries in the region have been facing an upsurge in inter-community conflicts for several months.
“It is a question of telling the five partners that they must do better than they have done so far”, said a European source, while explaining that it was not a question of “making each other feel guilty, but of saying in what direction we should go. One of the messages will be that the EU is in support, but not complementary”, she added, recalling that it is up to the G5 Sahel states to assume their responsibilities, restore services and take ownership of the security aspect.
“It is up to them to take the first step, that they are not doing enough”, said this source, judging that countries must do more before the EU gets more involved, for example by going beyond mere training.
Another diplomat called for the EUTM Mali mission to conduct training and education in the centre of the country. He added that the G5 Sahel joint force should focus on the most at risk areas, such as the three-border region between Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.
This force has 5,000 men to cover a huge territory. According to a European official, 20% of the equipment promised to the force has already been provided and 60% is on its way. The remaining 20% has yet to be identified.
In addition, the Council should also decide to amend the mandates of EUCAP Sahel Mali and EUCAP Sahel Niger with a view to further regionalising EU CSDP missions in the Sahel by extending their area of operations. The EUCAP Sahel Mali mission should also be allocated a budget of €68.15 million for the period from 1 March 2019 to 14 January 2021.
Defence Foreign Affairs Council
On Tuesday 14 May, after an exchange of views between EU and G5 Sahel ministers mainly on security aspects, Defence Ministers will discuss permanent structured cooperation (PESCO).
PESCO. In particular, they should focus on the implementation of the 34 projects approved under this framework.
According to a European diplomat, a new call for projects should be launched by the end of the year before a break in 2020 to synchronise projects with the coordinated annual defence review (CARD). For this third call, about ten projects should be selected, according to this source.
In addition, according to a source from the European Defence Agency, four PESCO projects have requested the Agency's assistance. These are those related to: - cyber rapid response team and mutual assistance in cyber security; - European secure software defined radio (ESSOR); - the maritime (semi) autonomous for mine countermeasures; - chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear surveillance as a service.
To support the discussion on the PESCO, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy should present a progress report on the implementation of this cooperation and the Council should adopt a recommendation assessing the progress made by the participating Member States towards fulfilling the commitments made.
On the other hand, discussions on the participation of non-Member States in PESCO projects are still not solid (see EUROPE 12197/30) and will not allow ministers to adopt a decision on the subject. According to a European source, while discussions are progressing, Member States are not yet close to an agreement.
NATO. Over lunch, the Council will discuss EU-NATO cooperation with the Alliance's Deputy Secretary General, Rose Gottemoeller. The debate should focus in particular on hybrid threats.
Of the 74 EU/NATO joint actions, 20 focus on hybrid threats.
EDA. Finally, ministers will meet in the Steering Board of the European Defence Agency (EDA). They are expected to discuss the report of the Head of the Agency on the implementation of the revised EDA Statute as well as the conclusions and recommendations of the long-term study which was completed in May 2017 and which strengthened the Agency's mission at several levels.
Ministers will also review progress on ongoing EDA projects in capabilities and research and technology and provide new guidance.
In the margins of the Steering Committee, 20 Member States are expected to sign the EDA's new programme on optimising the authorisation of cross-border movements in Europe. This programme aims to reduce the administrative burden of military movements of personnel and equipment as part of the Agency's work on military mobility.
Celebration of a decade of the Eastern Partnership
In addition, in parallel with these ministerial meetings, the Member States and the six non-Member States of the Eastern Partnership (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus) will celebrate its tenth anniversary.
In addition to the traditional annual meeting of Foreign Ministers on Monday 13 May, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, will welcome the leaders of the six non-Member States concerned for a dinner. A high-level conference will be held on this subject on 14 May.
The Eastern Partnership Ministerial meeting should be an opportunity to take stock of the implementation of “20 deliverables for 2020” to take stock of the countries' progress over the last ten years and to start discussing the future of the Partnership.
A statement could be issued on this occasion. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)