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On 8 and 9 December 2025, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andžejs Viļumsons, participated in an informal meeting of the State Secretaries and Directors General of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the European Union (EU) Member States in Nicosia, Cyprus, where Cyprus presented its priorities for the EU Council Presidency, which will begin on 1 January.
Andžejs Viļumsons urged Cyprus to continue its work on strengthening EU security and defence, as well as providing all forms of support to Ukraine. Russia continues its hybrid threat campaign against EU Member States, as evidenced by attacks on civilian and logistics infrastructure. The State Secretary pointed out that the EU must continue its work on hybrid threats in order to prevent, among other things, foreign information manipulation and interference. Negotiations on the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework for 2028-2034, as well as EU enlargement and competitiveness issues, will also be important topics for the Cyprus Presidency.
The meeting provided an opportunity to exchange views on the challenges facing the EU in the current geopolitical situation. Andžejs Viļumsons stressed that it is essential to reach an agreement at the upcoming European Council on 18-19 December on the transfer of frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank to support Ukraine through the Reparation Loan Instrument.
Participants also discussed cooperation between Member States and the European External Action Service in jointly addressing current geopolitical challenges.