Informal meeting of the foreign ministers of the EU

Gymnich 2020

Rome/Berlin [ENA] The developments in Belarus and the possible reactions of the European Union, the relations between the EU and Turkey, the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean, the relations between Europe and Russia, the geopolitical developments of the coronavirus pandemic and the European response. These have been the issues of the informal meeting of the foreign ministers of the European Union member states (Gymnich),

which was held on 27 and 28 August in Berlin. As reported through a note of the German Foreign Ministry, the meeting was hosted by the head of Berlin diplomacy, Heiko Maas, while the presidency was assigned to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy , Josep Borrell. The talks were also attended by the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi, and by the chairman of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, David McAllister.

The proceedings began with a session concerning Belarus, the latest developments in the country and the possible reactions of the European Union . A debate on relations between the European Union and Turkey followed, with reference also to the current situation in the Eastern Mediterranean and in the region. At the informal meeting of the 27 foreign ministers (Gymnich) the High Representative of the European Union, Josep Borrell, also presented the hypothesis of sanctions against Turkey, among the options for dealing with the crisis in the Eastern Mediterranean - European Union sources referred.

Meanwhile, Germany undertook a mediation attempt to ease tensions following the exploration of Turkish hydrocarbons in the Greek Exclusive Economic Zone (not recognized by Ankara). The head of Berlin diplomacy, Heiko Maas, went first to Athens and then to Ankara on an exploratory mission.