Ministers van Buitenlandse Zaken hebben Midden-Oosten, China en top Oostelijk partnerschap op agenda 18 november (en)

On 18 November, the Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Linas Linkevičius will attend the EU’s Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels. This political discussion ahead of the upcoming 3rd Eastern Partnership Summit is due at the end of November. Foreign ministers will debate a draft of the declaration of the Vilnius Summit and progress by Ukraine on the benchmarks set out by the Council conclusions of 10 December 2012.

The discussion on Syria will focus on prospects and challenges for the Geneva II peace conference. At the meeting, the foreign ministers will review political situations in Egypt and Iraq. There is a possibility of discussion on Libya depending on the latest developments in the country. The Foreign Ministers Council meeting will discuss the EU’s Southern neighbourhood as well as migration flows in the Mediterranean region in the context of the 3 October tragedy near the island of Lampedusa.

The Foreign Ministers Council meeting will also take stock of the preparations for the upcoming 16th EU-China summit on 21 November in Beijing. The Council will also debate the situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The agenda of this Council also includes a joint meeting of the foreign affairs and defence ministers in preparation for the December European Council that is set to deal with issues related to defence. The Foreign Affairs Council in defence configuration will be held on 19 November.

After the Foreign Affairs Council meeting, L.Linkevičius will attend a high level public event - policy dialogue “Do EU sanctions work?” The event is organised by the think tank European Policy Centre.