The leaders of the European Union countries will meet with their counterparts from Latin America and the Caribbean Monday and Tuesday, in Brussels to try to strengthen their relations, despite their differences over the background of the war in Ukraine, especially.
This marks the third summit between the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC). The last summit was held in 2015, and both sides are now trying to make up for lost time, but the rapprochement is challenging.
Differences emerged during the negotiations concerning a joint declaration, mainly due to the European Union's desire to mention the war initiated by Russia in Ukraine.
The European Union seeks to garner as much international support as possible against Moscow. Still, the 33 countries in CELAC do not have a united stance on this issue and do not want it to dominate the discussions.
The French Presidency stated, "Our goal is to have all countries in the region support Ukraine and provide support to the Ukrainian government, at least in their statements, to signal violations of international law faced by the country."