COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Press material Monday, 09 February 2026

● European Council   09/02/2026 12:29 | Media advisory | One-year badge 2026 - accreditation is open   This badge is intended for journalists residing in Belgium and gives access, during the whole calendar year 2026, to the Council premises during summits and high-level meetings, as well as on regular working days.  Application deadline: Friday 27 February 2026 at 14:00 Apply for the one-year badge More information on the one-year badge (PDF) Procedure Before starting the online procedure please make sure to have at hand the following piece of information and documents: the number of your valid identity document (national identity cards are only accepted for EU and EFTA nationals) or passport, as well as the issuing and expiry dates thereof a scanned copy of your EU or Belgian press card, OR of the assignment letter signed by your editor-in-chief confirming that you are covering EU affairs during the current year a passport-type picture in .jpeg format (max. 500KB) you will also be asked to print, sign and upload a form to give your authorisation to be security screened by the Belgian authorities. You will be able to download your consent form from your account Collection of badges You will receive an email to inform you once your application has been validated and the badge is ready to be collected. One-year badges can be collected, on an individual basis only, at the Justus Lipsius main accreditation desk on working days. Please ensure you have your ID/passport when collecting the badge.   Visit the website

● European Council

09/02/2026 12:53 | Media accreditation | Media advisory - Accreditation for the European Council, 19 and 20 March 2026   The meeting of the European Council will take place on 19 and 20 March 2026 in the Europa building in Brussels. Address: Rue de la Loi 155/Wetstraat 155, 1040-Brussels. Registration Media representatives wishing to cover the meeting in person are required to register in advance, following this link. The deadline to register is Friday 27 February 2026 at 14:00 CEST.  IMPORTANT: Media representatives are strongly advised to apply by the deadline to allow for sufficient time to process the requests especially those attending a European Summit for the first time or who have not completed a full security screening during the Informal EU Leaders' retreat of 12 February 2026. Due to organizational and security constraints, the Council cannot guarantee the verification of applications for accreditation received after the deadline. Without such verification, the access to the summit will be denied.  There is no need to register or collect any badge for the media representatives already in possession of the European Council annual badge. For more information, please also consult the Media accreditation page. Badge Collection A media accreditation desk will be set up at the LEX building (Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 145) outside the security perimeter, to allow for collection of badges during the events. Opening hours will be communicated at a later stage. Media opportunities A detailed programme, including information on media opportunities, will be published at a later stage. Press materials Videos and photos of the summits will be available on: Council Newsroom EC Audiovisual Service Council Live   Visit the website ● General Secretariat of the Council   Think Tank reports on Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine   The logic of attrition in the Russo-Ukrainian war; the Trump administration and the Russia-Ukraine war and the chances of an agreement with Moscow; the EU and the war in Ukraine and Russia; Europe and the danger of strategic reassurance are some of the topics dealt with in this update.   Read full post

 

Press material Friday, 06 February 2026

● General Secretariat of the Council   06/02/2026 17:37 | Press release | Forward look: 9 - 22 February 2026   Overview of the main topics and events at the Council of EU and European Council for the coming fortnight. Foreign Affairs Council (Defence), 11 February 2026 The Foreign Affairs Council with defence ministers will exchange views on EU military support for Ukraine and hold an informal discussion on the security and defence outlook for 2026. Read more Economic and Financial Affairs Council, 17 February 2026 Among other items at the February ECOFIN meeting, ministers will have the opportunity to discuss the supplementary pensions package - part of the EU’s savings and investment union agenda. The Council will be invited to approve the guidelines for the EU’s annual budget 2027. Finally, ministers are expected to activate the national escape clause for defence financing for Austria. Read more Other meetings Informal EU leaders' retreat, 12 February 2026 Informal meeting of employment and social affairs ministers, 12-13 February 2026 Eurogroup, 16 February 2026   Indicative calendar of meetings under the Cyprus presidency (1 January - 30 June 2026) Cyprus presidency   Visit the website

● Council of the EU

06/02/2026 17:17 | Media advisory | Press briefing - Foreign Affairs Council (Defence) of 11 February 2026   The press briefing ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council (Defence) will take place on Monday, 9 February 2026 at 17.00. This press briefing will be 'off the record' and will be given by a senior EEAS official in a hybrid format: EU accredited journalists will be able to participate and ask questions either remotely or in person at the Europa building press room. To attend the event remotely, please use the link below to register and have the possibility to ask questions. Those who already registered for previous press events of the Foreign Affairs Council do not need to do it again. Deadline for registration: Monday, 9 February 2026, 16.00 Further instructions will be sent to all registered participants shortly after the deadline. Registration page Media accreditation for journalists   Visit the website ● Council of the EU ● European Council   06/02/2026 14:50 | Media accreditation | Media advisory - Informal EU leaders' retreat of 12 February 2026   Indicative programme All times are approximate and subject to change Thursday 12 February 09:30       Arrivals and doorsteps (live stream 1 / live stream 2) 10:30       Exchange of views with the President of the European Parliament  11:00       Exchange of views with Mario Draghi  13:00       European Council working lunch 15:00       Exchange of views with Enrico Letta   16:00       European Council working session - afternoon +/- 18:30  Press conference   TTBC       Exit doorsteps and departures At the end of the meeting (+/- 18:30) - Press conference in Alden Biesen in live streaming. Information EU leaders will participate in an informal meeting in Alden Biesen (Belgium) on 12 February 2026. The Council services will set up a fully-fledged press centre within the Alden Biesen compound. This facility will be operational as of 7:30 and until 3 hours after the press conference, including live stand-up positions, a covered doorstep area, tables, chairs, desks, screens and access to the host signal.   The media security screening will be done upon arrival to the venue. Please foresee time to pass the control. Parking for press has been reserved close to the venue, and a shuttle service to Alden Biesen will be offered to the media attending the event, with departure times from the Jean Rey square at 07:30 and 08:00. The deadline to book transport or parking via press.centre@consilium.europa.eu has been extended until Monday 9 at 14:00. Only the media representatives with a booking confirmation and in possession of the Council 2026 summit badge or the event badge will be allowed to use the shuttle or park their car on the spot. The Council press centre in the Justus Lipsius building will also be operational throughout the event. Please note that a summit badge or a Council yearly badge will be required to access our premises that day. The access will be only possible via the Justus Lipsius main entrance. Registration The accreditation for the Informal EU leaders´retreat is closed since 6 February at 11:00 Accreditation Accredited media representatives will receive a confirmation e-mail. Annual summit badge 2026. No need to register for the event. Please collect your badge before 10/02 at the JL accreditation desk. Event badge for journalists without annual Council badge: Distributed at the LEX building on 11/02 from 14:00 to 19:00 and 12/02 from 07:00 to 10:00. 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 materials Videos and photos of the summits will be available on: Council Newsroom EC Audiovisual Service Council Live     Visit the website ● European Council   06/02/2026 10:19 | Media advisory | Press briefing - Informal EU leaders' retreat of 12 February 2026   The press briefing ahead of the informal EU leaders' retreat of 12 February 2026 will take place on Tuesday, 10 February 2026 at 14.30 in the Justus Lipsius building press room. This briefing will be "off the record". The press briefing will take place in a hybrid format: EU accredited journalists or journalists accredited for the meeting will be able to participate and ask questions either in person at the Justus Lipsius press room or remotely. To attend the event remotely, please use the link below to register and have the possibility to ask questions. Deadline for registration: Tuesday, 10 February 2026 at 13.30 Further instructions will be sent to all registered participants shortly after the deadline. Registration page Media accreditation for journalists   Visit the website