EU-CELAC Ministerial Meeting: Co-Chairs' press statement
Strengthened partnership to deliver on global challenges
The meeting of Foreign Ministers of the European Union (EU) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) took place in New York on 24 September 2025. The meeting provided a timely platform to advance the constructive bi-regional dialogue, paving the way for the upcoming IV CELAC-EU Summit set to take place on 9-10 November 2025 in Santa Marta, Colombia.
The meeting was co-chaired by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, and Colombia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio Mapy, acting as pro tempore presidency of CELAC. Participants included Jozef Síkela, EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, members of the enlarged CELAC troika — Uruguay, Honduras, as well as Jamaica —along with Foreign Ministers and representatives from EU Member States and CELAC countries.
Ministers took stock of the progress achieved in strengthening the EU-CELAC partnership and reaffirmed their commitment to deepening it further. The partnership is delivering for our citizens in many areas: from the fight against transnational crime, where regular coordination between both regions is already taking place, through the implementation of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance through infrastructure and capacity building, to a new set of joint initiatives for innovation and research.
Discussions also focused on the EU-CELAC Summit as a key opportunity to consolidate the alliance around the triple transition: green, digital, and social, and to jointly advance shared priorities such as the defence of democracy, the reform of multilateralism, and an international rules-based order. The Ministers underlined the importance of continuing to enhance cooperation in matters of public security and the fight against transnational organized crime. The Ministers also advocated for strengthening cooperation in the areas of climate action and energy transition, regional interconnections, digitalization, food security, health self-sufficiency, social justice and inclusion, gender equality, education, science, and technology.
Recognising the shifting global landscape, Ministers stressed the need for regular high-level political dialogue to exchange on strategic challenges, from international security to global governance. They underscored the urgency of reinforcing trade and investment ties to boost economic security, and advance the full implementation of existing and future partnership and trade agreements. Ministers emphasised the need to build resilient, sustainable and innovation-driven bi-regional value chains capable of withstanding global disruptions, while also generating quality jobs, fostering, inclusive growth, and accelerating the green and digital transitions across both regions. They welcomed the recent progress achieved under the EU-LAC Global Gateway Investment Agenda and called for deeper collaboration to accelerate its implementation, translating commitments into tangible benefits for citizens and businesses.
Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to upholding the core values that define the EU-CELAC partnership—human rights, democracy and the rule of law—recognizing that these principles face growing challenges. They emphasized that both regions can effectively preserve and advance these shared values only through joint and sustained efforts.
At this historic 80th anniversary of the United Nations, Ministers renewed their commitment to inclusive and effective multilateralism and a rules-based international order, grounded in international law and the principles of the UN Charter, including the principles of peaceful settlement of disputes, as well as the prohibition of the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state. Ministers discussed the need for a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace in Ukraine, the occupied Palestinian Territories, and in other conflicts around the globe, including Haiti. Ministers underlined that EU–CELAC cooperation is essential to reinvigorate multilateralism at a time of unprecedented strain on the UN system. They agreed to work together to defend the principles of the UN Charter, to advance the implementation of the Pact for the Future and to contribute constructively to the UN80 reform initiative, ensuring a more effective, accountable and adequately financed United Nations.
Ministers underlined the essential role of civil society including the business community in advancing the EU-CELAC partnership, and the EU-LAC Foundation’s valuable work in deepening bi-regional ties.