European Political Community: 44 head of state gathered in Prague today

Launched by French President Emmanuel Macron, the idea of a European Political Community takes shape this Thursday, October 6, 2022 in Prague, where 44 countries are gathered. The aim is to unite beyond the European Union.

Not all European countries are in the European Union, and do not necessarily want to join. Some are still candidate for a long time such as Turkey. But some major issues (security, energy) deserve consultation. Especially since Putin started his war. Hence the idea launched last May by Emmanuel Macron, during his visit to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, to create a forum. This can be called as a kind of "G44 between Europeans".

Some see it as an opportunity to quickly bring countries like Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, which aspire to join the EU, while the long and complex accession process is likely to drag on years or even decades, and therefore discourage applicants. "It is a question of giving a foretaste of the EU to prevent the frustrations of waiting and to disseminate its liberal democratic culture upstream of accessions, to prevent current situations in Hungary", analyzes Sébastien Maillard, director from the Jacques Delors Institute.

Turkish President Erdogan will also attend the mentioned summit. One of the most important meetings in the normalisation process between Turkey and Armenia since the end of last year will take place on Thursday in Prague between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The meetings will begin at 1:00 p.m. with a plenary where everyone will speak. It will be followed by all-out bilateral meetings. Thus, after the recent resumption of armed tensions between Yerevan and Baku, a meeting is also scheduled between the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinian and the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, in the presence of MM Michel and Macron .

After this day, which will be punctuated by a dinner, the Heads of State and Government of the European Union will spend the night in Prague to hold an informal summit on Friday, of which the Russian war in Ukraine and the energy crisis will be the main topics.