The leaders of the “Med9” countries and governments, which includes nine southern European Union countries, will discuss the issue of migration and the European Union’s policy regarding the Mediterranean region during a summit to be held in Cyprus on Friday, according to what the French presidency reported on Thursday.
The summit is attended by the leaders of the nine countries: France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Malta, Slovenia and Croatia, with the exception of the Portuguese Prime Minister.
Jordanian King Abdullah II and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are also scheduled to attend the summit.
During the summit, which will be held in Paphos in western Cyprus, officials will discuss the situation in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and the West Bank, as well as strengthening the relationship between Jordan and the European Union, and the work program of the next European Commission.
An advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron said, “There is a will to adopt a Mediterranean policy on traditional challenges related to civilian safety,” such as forest fires, as well as “the field of transportation, energy (policy), and competition.”
On the Middle East level, the Elysee Palace said, “Our ability to influence is limited, but more European consensus points must be reached.”
Paris explained that the “Med9” summit will discuss, in particular, “strengthening humanitarian assistance to Gaza.”
The French presidency indicated that the summit “will constitute an opportunity to discuss how the European Union can further mobilize its ranks.”
On the immigration front, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called, yesterday, Wednesday, for the European Migration Charter to enter into force as of the summer of 2025, that is, a year before the specified date.
In Paris, French Interior Minister Bruno Rotayo, who made immigration one of his priorities, called in an interview with the newspaper “Le Parisien” to “bring the implementation of the asylum and migration package closer by six months, starting from January 2026.”
Migration will be on the agenda of the European Summit on October 17 and 18 in the Belgian capital, Brussels, where state and government leaders will address tightening checks at the European Union’s external borders and accelerating migrant returns.
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