Monday’s meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels: Exchange on transatlantic relations

Met dank overgenomen van Duits voorzitterschap Europese Unie 2e helft 2020 (Duits Voorzitterschap) i, gepubliceerd op zondag 6 december 2020.

On 7 December, EU Foreign Ministers will meet in Brussels for the Foreign Affairs Council under the auspices of the German EU Council Presidency. The meeting will be chaired by Josep Borrell, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.​​​​​​​

The meeting will begin with an update by the High Representative Josep Borrell on international current affairs, including the political situation in Georgia after the recent elections, EU-Turkey relations, and the EU’s response to the legislative elections in Venezuela on 6 December as well as Human Rights.

Ministers will then discuss transatlantic relations. The exchange will focus on how to reinvigorate the EU-US relationship and engage with the new Administration as well as on the priorities for an EU offer of renewed transatlantic cooperation on a wide range of international and bilateral matters.

Also, ministers will review the current situation in Hong Kong as well as the implementation of the Council Conclusions of 28 July 2020 on this matter.

Over lunch, the EU’s strategic autonomy will be discussed, a concept that is being developed with a view to making the EU more capable of acting to safeguard its values and interests internationally - with partners whenever possible, but also alone if necessary.

Info

The meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels will begin on 7 December at 9.30. Ministers’ arrivals at the Council meeting will be carried live on the website of the Council of the EU beginning at 8.45. The press conference following the meeting at 14.30 will also be carried live on the same website.