Informal meetings of EU Foreign Affairs and Defence Ministers in Brussels

Informal meeting of EU Foreign Affairs Ministers – Thursday 29 August

The meeting will start with a discussion on Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and on global outreach, with the participation of Foreign Affairs Minister of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba.

EU Foreign Ministers will then exchange over lunch with Foreign Affairs Minister of Türkiye, Hakan Fidan, on the state of play of EU-Türkiye relations and regional and global issues of shared interest.

In the afternoon, the discussion will focus on the situation in the Middle East on the background of the latest escalation of tensions in the region and the ongoing negotiation efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza. UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag, will join the discussion to debrief Ministers on the humanitarian situation on the ground.

Ministers will also discussthe political crisis in Venezuela, in the aftermath of the ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice. Nearly one month after the presidential elections on 28 July, Venezuelan authorities have not published or allowed for the independent verification of the official voting records (“actas”) from all the polling stations.

The High Representative will make a short statement to the media before the meeting at around 8:15 CEST, which can be followed on EbS.

The press conference after the meeting is scheduled for +/- 17:15 CEST and will also be broadcast on EbS.