EU PRESIDENCY

Ministerial meeting in Murcia

José Manuel Albares opened an informal ministerial meeting which discussed, among other issues, EU enlargement, how EU policies must be adapted, and the budgetary implications of enlargement.

September 28, 2023

The General Affairs Council (GAC) discussed the importance of preparing for the accession of new countries to the EU project with guarantees, institutional reforms and decision-making methods, with the aim, in the words of Albares, of “continuing to be as effective as the European Union has been in the face of the COVID-19 crisis or the Russian aggression against Ukraine”.

The meeting in Murcia is in preparation for the third summit of the European Political Community and the key meeting of the Presidency to be held in Granada on 4-6 October. This meeting will bring together the 47 countries of Europe, with their respective heads of state and government, to reflect on enlargement and open strategic autonomy, on the basis of a report recently presented by Pedro Sánchez, the acting President of the Government of Spain.

PHOTOS: PEPE MÉNDEZ (NOLSOM)