EUROGROUP,COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,update

 

Meetings Thursday, 12 March 2026

● Eurogroup

11/03/2026 15:39 | Press release | Eurogroup President Pierrakakis' report to the President of the Euro Summit   The President of the Eurogroup, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, has sent a letter to the President of the Euro Summit, António Costa, to report on the recent work by the Eurogroup and upcoming work priorities. The letter will inform the discussion that EU leaders will hold at the Euro Summit on 19 March 2026. In his letter the Eurogroup President reports on the state of the euro area economy, on how imbalances can be addressed through international cooperation, the strengthening of the international role of the euro and progress on accelerating the savings and investments union. The report furthermore takes stock on Eurogroup efforts to prepare Europe’s financial system for the digital age, its coordinating role to ensure fiscal sustainability while supporting strategic priorities and the Eurogroup’s core work to strengthen competitiveness and resilience. “Although the fundamentals of the euro zone economy remain solid, our common economic area continues to operate in a global environment characterised by considerable uncertainty. This only underlines the need to relentlessly focus on reaching common goals, such as the capital markets union and Europe's strategic autonomy.” — Kyriakos Pierrakakis, President of the Eurogroup Letter of the President of the Eurogroup, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, to the President of the Euro Summit, António Costa, of 11 March 2026   Visit the website

● Council of the EU   12/03/2026 14:58 | Meetings | General Affairs Council, 17 March 2026   Background brief - General Affairs Council of 17 March 2026   View meeting page

● Council of the EU

12/03/2026 14:13 | Media advisory | Press briefing - General Affairs Council of 17 March 2026   The press briefing ahead of the General Affairs Council will take place tomorrow, Friday, 13 March 2026 at 13.45 in the Europa building press room. This briefing will be "off the record". The press briefing will take place in a hybrid format: EU accredited journalists will be able to participate and ask questions either remotely or in person. 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 General Affairs Council do not need to do it again. Deadline for registration: Friday, 13 March 2025 at 12.45 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

12/03/2026 09:24 | Media advisory | Press briefings - Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council (Energy) of 16 March, and Environment Council of 17 March 2026   The press briefing ahead of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council (Energy) will take place Friday, 13 March 2026 at 16.00, followed by the press briefing ahead of the Environment Council. These back-to-back and "off the record" press briefings will take place 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 Transport, Telecommunications and Energy, or the Environment Council do not need to do it again. Deadline for registration: Friday, 13 March at 15.00 Further instructions will be sent to all registered participants shortly after the deadline. Registration page Media accreditation for journalists Meeting page - Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council (Energy), 16 March 2026 Meeting page - Environment Council, 17 March 2026   Visit the website

● General Secretariat of the Council

A cautionary tale for Europe: Carlo Masala’s hypothetical scenario of a Russian victory   Professor of International Politics at the Bundeswehr University in Munich, Carlo Masala, considers not only what would happen if Putin prevailed, but also how that could plausibly occur.    Read full post

● European Council

11/03/2026 19:09 | Statements and remarks | Joint press statement by President of the European Council, António Costa, and President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev   On 11 March 2026, the President of the European Council, António Costa and the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev met in Baku, the Republic of Azerbaijan. Emphasizing the strategic importance of the EU-Azerbaijan partnership, the Presidents expressed their commitment to further deepening political dialogue and practical cooperation, building on the positive momentum of recent high-level meetings, including in the areas of security, energy and transport. This cooperation reflects the shared interest of both sides and contributes to the promotion of peace, stability, connectivity and sustainable development in the wider Black Sea, South Caucasus and Central Asia regions. They reaffirmed that relations between the European Union and the Republic of Azerbaijan are grounded in mutual respect, equality and shared benefit, in full respect of the Charter of the United Nations and international law, including the sovereignty and territorial integrity of States. The Presidents reiterated their commitment to the swift finalisation of negotiations on a new comprehensive bilateral agreement, which would provide a solid legal framework to further develop relations. They also underlined the importance of adopting renewed Azerbaijan-EU Partnership Priorities and making full use of existing dialogue mechanisms, including the EU-Azerbaijan Cooperation Council, to further advance the bilateral agenda in all areas. Reaffirming their shared strategic objective of a peaceful, stable, interconnected and prosperous South Caucasus free of dividing lines, the Presidents welcomed the recent positive regional developments, notably the historic momentum in the Azerbaijan-Armenia peace process. They welcomed the outcomes of the 8 August 2025 Washington Summit and the subsequent steps taken towards the normalisation of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The President of the European Council reiterated the EU’s full support for efforts of the two countries aiming to achieve sustainable peace in the region through bilateral dialogue. The Presidents highlighted Azerbaijan’s large-scale post-conflict reconstruction and development efforts in its Garabagh and Eastern Zangezur regions. Acknowledging the scale of the challenges, particularly landmine contamination, they called for increased international support while noting that the European Union is the leading international donor in humanitarian de-mining. The Presidents underscored that implementation of the “Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities for Socio-Economic Development” offers opportunities to expand Azerbaijan-EU cooperation in respective priority areas, including in trade, connectivity, investment, economic resilience and the clean energy. The Presidents emphasised Azerbaijan’s key role in regional connectivity, notably through the Middle Corridor, strengthening transport, trade, energy and digital links between the Black Sea, the South Caucasus and Central Asia. The European Union reaffirmed its commitment to cooperation with Azerbaijan on connectivity under the Global Gateway, other relevant mechanisms, including support to railway modernisation in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of the Republic of Azerbaijan, alongside ongoing efforts on the implementation of TRIPP. They welcomed the establishment of a High-Level Working Group on Economic Cooperation to strengthen EU-Azerbaijan economic cooperation and investments under the Global Gateway initiative. Recalling longstanding critical energy partnership, the Presidents acknowledged Azerbaijan’s role as a reliable partner in the diversification of Europe’s energy supplies and committed to the further implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Partnership in the field of energy signed in 2022. They underlined the value of the Southern Gas Corridor and Green Energy Advisory Council and the potential to expand energy cooperation in renewables, including wind and solar power, as well as electricity interconnection initiatives, such as the Black Sea Submarine Cable project. Welcoming the successful outcomes of the twenty-ninth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) held in Baku in November 2024 under the presidency of the Republic Azerbaijan, the Presidents reaffirmed their readiness to enhance cooperation on climate change and environmental protection. The Presidents welcomed Azerbaijan's hosting of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum, to be held in May 2026 as a significant contribution to global efforts on sustainable urbanization and resilient urban development and expressed readiness to leverage this Forum to deepen EU-Azerbaijan cooperation in respective areas. The Presidents emphasised the benefits of closer cooperation in defense and security, to address emerging threats such as organised crime, terrorism, extremism, illicit trafficking in weapons and drugs, money laundering, human trafficking and irregular migration. The Presidents underlined the importance of strengthening cooperation in digital transformation and innovation. They recognized the increasing significance of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies, and expressed readiness to enhance cooperation in this domain with a view to fostering innovation, economic resilience and development, as well promoting sustainable and growth-oriented digital ecosystems. The Presidents reaffirmed the importance of people-to-people contacts including through enhanced mobility. They welcomed continued implementation of the Visa Facilitation Agreement, with a view to further facilitating mutual travel, and committed to strengthening cooperation in education, culture, youth and research. The leaders discussed the main current geopolitical issues, including the latest developments in Iran and Ukraine.   Visit the website ● Council of the EU   11/03/2026 15:54 | Press release | Fisheries and aquaculture: Council agrees negotiating position on new framework for statistics   The Council agreed today on a mandate to begin negotiations with the European Parliament on a regulation establishing a new European framework for fisheries and aquaculture statistics. The new framework will modernise the collection and use of statistical data on fisheries and aquaculture across the European Union, thereby allowing for the use of reliable and timely data, which are essential for designing, implementing and evaluating EU policies, including the common fisheries policy (CFP), and for supporting sustainable management of marine resources and the development of the blue economy. “Once adopted, the new framework will help ensure that policymakers, researchers and stakeholders have access to high-quality data to support sustainable fisheries, responsible aquaculture and evidence-based policymaking across the European Union.” — Maria Panayiotou, Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment of the Republic of Cyprus The future regulation will replace five existing regulations that currently govern the collection of data on fish catches, landings, the EU fishing fleet and aquaculture production, and create a single and coherent legal framework. By consolidating these regulations, the new framework is expected to improve consistency and efficiency in data collection and reporting across the EU. The updated framework also seeks to make better use of modern data sources and digital technologies, including administrative data and electronic databases and registers. At the same time, it aims to ensure high standards of quality, comparability and reliability for European statistics. In the negotiating mandate agreed today EU member states clarified several elements of the Commission proposal, including reporting requirements, the scope of data collection and the balance between additional statistical information and the need to limit administrative burden for national authorities and economic operators. Next steps Negotiations between the Council presidency and the European Parliament are expected to start later this year. Commission proposal (30 July 2025)   Visit the website