EU leaders will discuss European defence during an informal meeting at Château de Limont. In order to comply with the constraints imposed by the limited space available at the Informal EU Leader’s retreat venue, a maximum of 100 media representatives will be allowed on site in person to cover the arrival doorsteps. The group authorized on the premises will be selected taking into account different criteria to ensure a fair and balanced representation. The rest of the accredited media representatives interested in following the events from the Council building will have the possibility to access the Council press centre in the Justus Lipsius building, which will remain opened until 3 hours after the press conference. A final press conference will be held in the Justus Lipsius Press Room after the event. The Council press centre in the Justus Lipsius building will remain opened for accredited journalists who wish to follow the press events from Brussels. When registering, journalists should specify whether they wish to cover the doorsteps on site or only cover the event from the Council building in Brussels. There will be no workstations for journalists at the retreat venue. RegistrationMedia representatives (including 1-year Council badge holders) are required to register their participation via the EVA portal on the Council website, specifying their interest (on-site for doorsteps, or remotely from the Council building). Apply here Deadline for registration: Friday 24 January 2025, 14:00 Media representatives are strongly advised to apply as soon as possible to allow for sufficient time to process the requests. Registrations submitted after the above-mentioned deadline will not be accepted. AccreditationAfter informing API-IPA, the selection for the onsite participation will be made by applying the following criteria in sequence until maximum capacity is reached. Priority will be given to reporters from audiovisual media with a maximum of 2 persons per media organisation (host video coverage will also be available): - Only journalists holding a European Council annual badge or with a recent (within the last 6 months) summit accreditation
- Geographically balanced representation of media from all EU 27 member states
- Brussels-based main international media and agencies
- A random selection (lottery) of accredited journalists
Such a model will ensure a good balance of having all member states represented, a wide coverage through big agencies and media outlets, as well as allow for a significant number of randomly selected Brussels-accredited journalists. The selected media will be provided transport back and forth between the Council building and the venue in order to cover the available press opportunities. No media will be allowed on site at chateau de Limont, unless transported through shuttles organised by the Council. The media that will not be selected will have the possibility to access the press centre in the Council building, as long as they hold a European Council 1-year badge or if they had a valid summit accreditation in the last 6 months. Media representatives that will be accredited will receive a confirmation e-mail. Details regarding badge collection will be communicated at a later stage. In order to make the best use of the capacity available, please inform the press centre immediately should you finally decide not to attend in person, via e-mail to press.centre@consilium.europa.eu Press conferencesA press conference will be held in the JL press room after the event. Press materialsVideos and photos of the summits will be available on: | 
