The EU Foreign Ministers will discuss the ‘Strategic Compass’, the Eastern Neighbourhood, China and Africa at their informal meeting (Gymnich) on 13-14 January in Brest (western France).
Strategic Compass. They will start their meeting with a joint lunch with their Defence counterparts (jumbo format) on the Strategic Compass (see other news). They will thus receive a detailed update on the Compass project along with a revised version of the project, the final version of which is to be adopted in March.
“In Brest, the French Presidency of the Council of the EU (FPEU) wishes to advance work on an ambitious Strategic Compass for a stronger and more operational European defence”, states the meeting’s programme.
Eastern Neighbourhood. The heads of European diplomacy will then discuss the security situation in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood, particularly in Ukraine.
It is a busy week for events related to tensions on the Ukrainian-Russian border. After US-Russia meetings and a NATO-Ukraine Commission on 11 January, Russia and NATO will hold talks on 12 January in Brussels before the OSCE meeting on 13 January.
The European ministers, who do not want to remain outside the discussions, are expected to consider the actions to be taken to respond to the immediate challenges and long-term issues for the security of the region.
“We must have a serious and demanding dialogue with Russia (...) to define the parameters of stability. We must conduct a dialogue without naivety and we must ensure that Europeans are fully involved in their security and not just spectators in the dialogue between the United States and Russia”, explained a French government source, adding that the ministers would discuss in Brest how to participate.
France advocates the resumption of discussions in the ‘Normandy’ format (Ukraine, Russia, Germany, France). On Tuesday 11 January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a ‘Normandy’ summit to “end the conflict” with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
An update could also be given on the situation on the EU’s border with Belarus and on the situation in Kazakhstan (see EUROPE 12865/20).
Current affairs. On Friday, the ministers will begin their work with routine business. They may discuss the situation in Mali, particularly in view of the sanctions decisions from ECOWAS. According to a French source, the ministers are expected to look at how the EU can continue to effectively support ECOWAS measures.
An update could also be given on the status of the Iranian nuclear negotiations in Vienna.
China. The ministers will then address the EU’s troubled relationship with China. Lithuania accuses China of blocking its exports from entering China. The European Commission has indicated for several weeks that it is examining this case. According to EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis, the European Commission is considering the possibility of opening consultations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on this issue (see EUROPE 12865/4).
A French government source also supported the idea of having a European response to this Chinese action against Lithuania. The ministers will review the situation at their meeting.
They are also expected to “ensure that the EU’s multidimensional approach (...) contributes to the objective of a more balanced and predictable relationship”, according to the FPEU.
Future EU/Africa relations. The final working session will be devoted to a discussion with African partners on the future of EU-Africa relations to finalise preparations for the sixth EU-African Union Summit, scheduled for 17-18 February in Brussels.
Prosperity, security and mobility will be at the heart of the discussions.
For the French Presidency, the relationship with Africa is a priority and the objective of this summit is to “rebuild the relationship” between the two continents, said Emmanuel Macron (see EUROPE 12850/17).
The challenge will be to “build a sustainable Euro-African revival around the triptych: prosperity, security and mobility”, said a French government source, citing, for the last part of this triptych, the strengthening of the Erasmus+ programme with Africa.
The discussion will be attended by the chair of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki, and the Foreign Minister of Senegal, Aïssata Tall Sall, whose country holds the chair of the African Union for two years (2022-2023).
The sixth EU/AU summit, originally scheduled for 2020, has been postponed several times, notably because of the coronavirus. It is expected to lead to a common strategy that goes beyond the renewed EU Global Strategy with Africa adopted in March 2020 (see EUROPE 12518/15).
In December 2021, in the aftermath of the EU leaders’ summit, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, organised a working session with AU and EU leaders, advisers, and experts (see EUROPE 12857/18). (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant, Léa Marchal and Aminata Niang)