EU leaders adopted conclusions on Ukraine, the economy, migration and the earthquake in Türkiye and Syria as main topics
EU leaders held an exchange of views with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the European Union’s support to Ukraine and its people.
The EU leaders also sent a joint letter to Türkiye where they extended condolences and pledged further support.
“We discussed how EU can assist to help the people of Türkiye and Syria after the disastrous earthquakes. One initiative taken by the Swedish Presidency and Ursula von der Leyen is to host a Donors’ Conference to mobilise funds from the int’l community.“
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in the margins of the meeting.
Ukraine
This was the first European summit that President Zelenskyy attended in person since the outbreak of Russia’s war in February 2022.
The European Council acknowledged the considerable efforts that Ukraine has made to meet the objectives required for its EU candidate status and welcomed the country’s reform efforts in such difficult times. EU leaders encouraged Ukraine to fulfil the conditions specified in the Commission’s opinion on its membership application in order to advance towards future EU membership and to start accession negotiations as soon as possible.
Economy
In the face of the new geopolitical reality, leaders discussed how to ensure the EU’s long-term competitiveness, prosperity and role on the global stage.
The European Council referred back to its December 2022 conclusions, in particular its invitation to the Commission to present a strategy at EU level to boost competitiveness and productivity and will revert to these matters at its upcoming meeting in March.
Migration
The European Council discussed the migration situation and called for immediate operational measures to be strengthened and accelerated and called on the Council to closely monitor and ensure the implementation of its conclusions.
Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue
The European Council welcomed the recent proposal to put the relationship between the two parties on a new and sustainable basis, with a view to their realising their European perspective.
Earthquake in Türkiye and Syria
The European Council welcomed the initiative of the Swedish Presidency and the Commission to host a Donors’ Conference to mobilise funds from the international community in support of the people of Türkiye and Syria in Brussels in March.
The EU leaders sent a joint letter to Türkiye where they extended condolences and pledged further support.