Romania's Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu will attend today a Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg.

The main items on the agenda will be the EU's response to Russia's aggression against Ukraine and the European Union's Global Gateway initiative adopted in December 2021. The ministers will also briefly address the Western Balkans, Libya and Mali.

According to the Romanian Foreign Ministry (MAE), before the meeting there is also a working breakfast with the participation of the International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan to discuss investigations into war crimes in Ukraine.

Aurescu and his counterparts will also be attending a luncheon hosted by Norway's foreign minister Anniken Huitfeldt and Iceland's foreign minister Thordis Kolbrun Reykfjord Gylfadottir focusing on the situation in Ukraine.

The discussion on Russia's aggression against Ukraine is taking place amidst the latest developments on the ground.

"Bogdan Aurescu will reiterate the firm condemnation of the atrocities in Bucha and other Ukrainian cities and will show that Romania supports their immediate and thorough investigation by the International Criminal Court. He will unveil an assessment by Romania of the current state of the crisis and the impact on the region. He will also mention the additional measures taken by Romania to support Ukraine and to receive Ukrainians fleeing the war, and will point out the need to continue international efforts to isolate Russia multilaterally, with the latest step in that direction having led to the suspension, at a meeting of the UN General Assembly on April 7, of Russia's rights within the Human Rights Council," MAE points out.

Aurescu will also brief the ministers on the results of the Moldova Support Conference of April 5, 2022, co-organised by Romania, France and Germany.

The ministers will also have a first discussion on how to start implementing the Global Gateway initiative.

In the new geopolitical context generated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the ministers will be invited to comment on priorities, as well as on how global and strategic connectivity issues should be addressed. Aurescu will advocate for maintaining an important emphasis on the implementation of Global Gateway projects in areas of interest to Romania, such as the Eastern Neighbourhood, Central Asia and the Western Balkans. The head of the Romanian diplomacy will reiterate the need for a geopolitical approach to connectivity, including from the perspective of creating alternatives to various initiatives promoted by third-party actors who do not share the same values.

The Western Balkans will also be briefly addressed, at which point Aurescu will express support for an in-depth discussion at a forthcoming FAC meeting to strengthen the EU's commitment to the region and to assess the impact of Russia's aggression against Ukraine on Balkan countries. He will reiterate the importance of opening EU accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia as soon as possible.

A lack of progress with democratic transition in Mali and security challenges there will also be discussed. The discussion is relevant for the readjustment of the EU's global engagement in the Sahel. Aurescu will reconfirm Romania's commitment to upholding peace and stability in the region. AGERPRES (RO - author: Andreea Rotaru, editor: Georgiana Tanasescu; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)