Good morning, everybody.
We have a full day ahead with the FAC and discussions.
First, we start with Ukraine and civilian detainees.
We have a lot of talk about the prisoners of war, also the children that have been abducted, but actually there are also civilians that are being really detained in the occupied territories. These are teachers, these are journalists. We have the NGOs here from Ukraine who are dealing with this, and we are also discussing what more can we do.
We are thinking of launching a platform where we can actually meet those requirements to get those people free, and also the information that we need about these people that are detained. It is much more difficult to have this information than about the children, for example.
Then, we move to discussion on Ukraine. Today we are hoping for that we get 250 listings agreed, and then we are also working for the 21st sanctions package, where we do not have agreement yet.
This is the biggest number of listings we have done so far. It is also [in] reaction to the attacks that Russia has had on the civilians recently.
Then, we have the discussion on the Black Sea strategy. We have the maritime hub there ready. Bulgaria and Romania are working together, really addressing the protection of critical infrastructure, but also the hybrid threats that are in this region.
We are going to also agree on a new Partnership Mission for Armenia to fight the hybrid threats and FIMI that they are really encountering with there.
Then, we have the discussion on the Middle East. We also have the lunch with the Gulf partners regarding the security of the Gulf region. It has been on top of everybody’s mind. The MoU is there, but not really holding, and we are discussing what more can we do, what kind of messages we can send that the Strait of Hormuz has to be opened, freedom of navigation has to be respected, there cannot be no tolls, no fees for navigation there.
And then our internal discussion on the Middle East, where we have now the Options Paper from the Commission on the table, highlighting the different options that we have. Let’s see how this discussion goes. Whether the Member States really have an appetite for one of those measures to be more concrete to come from the Commission.
Then, topics that we will discuss: Western Balkans, especially Bosnia and Herzegovina and the new High Representative, and the process around this.
And then what is happening also in Sudan. We should not forget about this, and send clear messages to those who are mediating, but also those who are meddling there, because we should not lose sight [of] what is happening.
Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-292435