Pact for the Mediterranean: press remarks by High Representative/Vice-President Kaja Kallas at the College readout

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The College adopted several initiatives today.  

First, we agreed on a new Pact for the Mediterranean. You just heard President von der Leyen’s statement on the subject. We will go into the details shortly.  

We also adopted a Roadmap for Defence Readiness. I will present after this press conference, together with Executive Vice-President Virkkunen and Commissioner Kubilius. 

We also adopted a proposal for an ‘EU global climate and Energy Vision’, which Executive Vice-President Ribera and Commissioners Hoekstra and Jørgensen will talk you through.  

And lastly, the College welcomed Pieter Hasekamp, Chairman of the independent European Fiscal Board. He briefed us on the Board’s Annual Report. With those points covered, let me turn to the Pact for the Mediterranean.  

The geopolitical importance of the Mediterranean cannot be overstated. It has been at the top of our foreign policy agenda since day one of this Commission. From the fall of the Assad regime to the war in Gaza, the region remains on a knife’s edge.  

Today, we have a window of opportunity to reframe the EU’s relationship with the Southern Neighbourhood. Commissioner Šuica will go into more detail, but a few short points from me.  

The Pact includes more than a hundred projects, including support for 5G and data centres as well as many youth-focussed schemes. Commissioner Šuica has been working hard to make these happen – she will give you more details. We want to support young people in our partner countries with better opportunities through training, jobs and stronger local economies.  

The common theme is to bring people together. This itself includes a range of initiatives, from rail, road and maritime links to subsea cables carrying data between our regions.  

This is also an opportunity to address shared security threats better. We see similar challenges in the Mediterranean Sea that we see in the Baltic and North Seas. Shadow fleet ships pose major security risks to both our regions. The EU needs to work closer with the region to discuss these topics, including via a new regional forum dedicated to security.  

In practice, this means: more cooperation, including through the EU’s military and civilian missions in the region; sharing situational awareness; and more coordination on common security threats.  

There is also potential to work closer together on disaster preparedness, including on an AI early warning system and a new firefighting hub for the region.  

The Pact builds on existing cooperation in the region. That is why we will also launch in November in the margins of our meeting with the Union for the Mediterranean.  

A lot has changed in the thirty years since the EU and the Mediterranean countries established a regional partnership. Today we adopt a blueprint to make our cooperation more focussed on the future. 

Thank you. 

Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-278308  

Q&A. 

Q. There is a competition in the region of the Mediterranean region for the presence of other countries. I can mention Russia, China, but not only that. So how do you see this development of the EU presence there can come into action? 

Thank you for your question. It is true that the geopolitical competition is really ongoing in all the regions. What Europe is bringing is a positive offer. We have so much to offer to those countries, really in terms of equal partnership. We are interested in the cooperation regarding energy, regarding connectivity, regarding critical raw materials. Also, they are interested in the prosperity of their countries and we can work hand in hand. I think our proposal is much more positive than that of the other geopolitical players, but we really need to work on that. I think being credible and reliable partner, this is also what our partners actually look in our partnership. Thank you. 

Q. I have a question on Gaza. In relation with the Mediterranean Pact. High Representative do you see, or do you expect very soon the European approach moving according to what's going on in Gaza? Because, for example, the American are setting up an office for the civilization and reconstruction in Gaza, which will be seated in Israel. I am asking you, if do you see that a need for the European Union- for this approach to move ahead - to be more practical, more quick, also to see how the European Union is confirming its primary role in Gaza?   

I will reply to the question of Gaza. When President Trump came up with the peace plan, then we took it piece by piece, how Europe can contribute to several points. And basically the three areas: reconstruction, security and governance. There are many issues that need to be solved and the peace to be sustainable in Gaza, it needs strong international backing, which also means European Union. So, we are working on those different points. We have two missions, EUBAM Rafah border crossing. We have EUPOL COPPS that is also training the Palestinian police to really get the whole of the security in that region. We are discussing the governance of Gaza - the day after where we have clear input. When it comes to reconstruction, then we have announced a new donor platform for Palestine, also to be engaged in reconstruction. But these things are very much interrelated, because without security, there is no point of reconstruction either, because then there will be damaged again, and without the issues of the governance, where also Europe has a very clear say: Hamas should have no role. There has to be a Palestinian ownership of these territories, the process has to be Palestinian owned, Palestinian-led. And as we have always supported the two-state solution, it means also that there are two-states there to support. These are the working lines that we are taking and working on. hanged. The words ‘good governance, democracy, human rights’ are not anymore in your speaking points. We are seeing young people protesting in Morocco, asking not for stadium but for hospitals, for example. And it is a problem of good governance. We are seeing a regime in Tunis, which is quite harsh. So, I'm wondering what is the place of these important issues, at least in the past - right now, it is more stability and prosperity. 

Q. Apart from methodology, there is something else that has changed. The words ‘good governance, democracy, human rights’ are not anymore in your speaking points. We are seeing young people protesting in Morocco, asking not for stadium but for hospitals, for example. And it is a problem of good governance. We are seeing a regime in Tunis, which is quite harsh. So, I'm wondering what is the place of these important issues, at least in the past - right now, it is more stability and prosperity.  Quick follow up on the Russia question to the High Representative, if I may. It is clear you are a positive offer. But do you think that the relationship with Russia should be a red line to trigger a negative consequence, not just carrot but also stick. 

Yes, on the question of relationship with Russia. We are raising these issues every time we meet with our counterparts, especially specifically on the circumvention of sanctions, because this war that is going on, it is also hurting the countries around the Mediterranean. So, we need a collective effort to really stop this, which means that, you know, wars end when one party runs out of money. That's why we have the sanctions, and that's why we are also working on the countries to not circumvent the sanctions. And of course, we have tools in our toolbox, which is sticks as well as the carrots, and we are using both. 

 Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-279097