Informele Raad van Ministers van Buitenlandse Zaken over EU in veranderende wereldorde (en)
Interior view of the Great Mosque of Córdoba. EFE
Spain's Miguel Ángel Moratinos will host an informal meeting of EU Foreign Affairs Ministers on 5 and 6 March in Córdoba, which will examine various issues related to the EU's external action.
These meetings, known as Gymnichs (the name of the German castle where the first meeting was held in 1974) are held every six months, and on this occasion both the setting chosen for the meeting, the Palacio de Viana in the historic Andalusian city of Córdoba, as well as the limited number of issues to be discussed, are all designed to encourage the European "family spirit" that always typifies these kind of events.
The idea for this Gymnich, which will be attended for the first time by the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton i, is to exchange ideas to allow the High Representative to design and implement foreign policy strategies for the EU. No formal agreements are expected to be taken as this is an informal meeting.
The EU as a global player
Miguel Ángel Moratinos intends to focus the discussions on two important issues: the EU's policy towards the new emerging political actors in the international scene and Europe's contribution to the Middle East peace process. The High Representative is also expected to report on the status of the work in progress to implement the European External Action Service, which the EU aims to launch in April.
The first issue will be discussed on Friday afternoon. The aim is to discuss how the EU can have a more active and effective policy on countries such as Brazil, China or India, which are key players in global matters such as the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons or climate change.
Middle East
On Saturday, Mr Moratinos will ask his European partners how the EU can contribute to the Middle East peace process from a global standpoint, which includes Syria and Lebanon as well as the Palestinians and the Israelis. The idea is to study ways of supporting the US Administration in its efforts to restart and successfully conclude the peace negotiations.
The Western Balkans
The situation in the Western Balkans will be the focus of the working lunch on Saturday with the three candidate countries of Croatia, Turkey and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The debate will focus on how to maintain and intensify the process that began in 2003 at the summit in Thessaloniki, during which the European prospects of these countries, with special emphasis on the situation in Bosnia Herzegovina, were strengthened. The Spanish Presidency also wishes to discuss the EU's role during the parliamentary elections to be held in Bosnia in October.
Meer over...