The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis, departs on Sunday, June 24, for Luxembourg to participate in the meetings of the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) and the General Affairs Council (GAC) of the European Union, scheduled for Monday, June 25 and Tuesday, June 26.

The FAC agenda will include developments in the Southern Neighbourhood, with special focus on Syria, Egypt and Libya, developments in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Pakistan, as well as the situation of human rights. Relevant Conclusions are expected to be adopted on the aforementioned issues. Moreover, Iran will be discussed during the working lunch of the Foreign Ministers.

In the afternoon of the same day, the Foreign Minister will attend the 22nd EU – Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Ministerial Meeting.

On the sidelines of the Foreign Affairs Council, Dr Kozakou-Marcoullis will hold bilateral meetings with her Belgian and Danish counterparts, and will give an interview to the Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung.

At the General Affairs Council meeting, the Foreign Minister will participate in the discussion related to issues of enlargement. Specifically, the Ministers of the 27 EU member states are called to decide on the opening of accession negotiations between the EU and Montenegro.

In the evening of June 24th, Dr Kozakou-Marcoullis will attend an unofficial working dinner, hosted jointly by Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates and the International Peace Institute. Focus of discussions will be the Middle East Peace Process, and the latest developments in Syria.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs will return to Cyprus on Wednesday, June 26.