ZAGREB, 7 Oct (Hina) -В The Mediterranean has become a key strategic area for the European Union amid global instability, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Wednesday as he opened the MED9 summit in Split.
Split is hosting the summit of the informal MED9 grouping of nine Mediterranean EU member states. Among those attending are French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President AntГіnio Costa.
The meeting comes six months after Croatia hosted the Three Seas Initiative summit in Dubrovnik, a format bringing together EU member states located between the Black, Adriatic and Baltic seas.
The two summits reflect Croatia’s unique position as the Mediterranean gateway to Central Europe,В Plenkovic said in his opening remarks.
The prime minister said structural changes in the global environment showed that the EU’s stability was inseparable from that of the wider Mediterranean region, while global turbulence was putting significant pressure on Europe’s energy security, supply chains and migration flows.
The Mediterranean has become a key area where many of Europe’s strategic challenges converge,В PlenkoviД‡ said, stressing the need to integrate a Mediterranean perspective into broader European decision-making.
Following Plenkovic’s opening remarks, the leaders will hold three closed-door sessions.
Prince Albert II of Monaco will attend one session to share his expertise on sustainability and marine conservation, while Jordan’s Crown Prince Hussein will address the situation in the Middle East at another.
Earlier on Wednesday, Plenkovic met Macron. Writing on X, he said Croatia and France were “continuing to deepen their strategic partnership”, particularly in the areas of the economy, security and defence, culture and cooperation within the EU.
“We discussed negotiations on the EU’s new Multiannual Financial Framework, the importance of diversifying energy supplies amid geopolitical uncertainty, EU enlargement policy and the situation in Southeast Europe,” the prime minister added.
