Luxembourg Foreign Minister Highlights Need to Defend EU Values at Warsaw Meeting

On Monday 10 and Tuesday 11 February 2025, Luxembourg’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, Xavier Bettel, attended the informal meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) in its Development configuration in Warsaw, Poland.

As reported by Luxembourg’s Foreign Ministry, the meeting agenda included discussions on the Global Gateway initiative and ways to enhance the resilience of partner countries.

During the session on strengthening resilience, ministers exchanged views on how populations in partner countries can be better prepared to withstand crises, whether natural or human-induced. Additionally, they debated the best strategies to support partners in the aftermath of such crises. Three countries - Ukraine, Mauritania and Syria - were selected as case studies to guide the discussions.

In his address, Minister Bettel emphasised the importance of cooperation policy and the need to maintain its budgets. He stressed that increased defence investments should not come at the expense of cooperation efforts, stating: "Investing in people is the best way to prevent conflicts."

The discussion on the Global Gateway focused on ways to improve coordination between the EU and its member states and to scale up the strategy. Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister emphasised the need for greater involvement of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the countries where projects are implemented.

Regarding European values, Minister Bettel reiterated that the EU must not abandon them but rather defend them. He emphasised that Luxembourg urges its partners not to backtrack on fundamental values, while also highlighting the need for better coordination among EU member states in response to negative developments in partner countries.

IK