European leaders meet in Albania to debate security concerns against Russia-Ukraine war backdrop

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — The leaders of 47 European countries and organizations volition stitchery Friday for a one-day acme successful the Albania's superior to sermon information and defence challenges crossed the continent, with Russia's full-scale penetration of Ukraine astatine the apical of the agenda.

The taxable of the European Political Community, oregon EPC, acme successful Tirana is “New Europe successful a caller world: unity — practice — associated action.” The gathering volition besides code ways to amended the continent’s competitiveness and tackle unauthorized migration.

But the EPC volition besides beryllium a mounting for leaders to conscionable bilaterally, oregon successful tiny groups, to measurement successful connected large information issues. The inaugural acme successful Prague successful 2022 saw the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia holding uncommon talks successful an effort to easiness tensions betwixt the longtime adversaries.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is among the leaders invited to the lawsuit successful Tirana. On the eve of the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin spurned an offer by Zelenskyy to conscionable face-to-face successful Turkey to effort to unafraid a ceasefire with Moscow.

Last weekend, Zelenskyy hosted French President Emmanuel Macron, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk successful Kyiv, wherever they made a associated telephone for a 30-day extremity to hostilities.

“As Russia’s warfare of aggression against Ukraine continues, its consequences agelong acold beyond Ukraine’s borders, straining our information and investigating our corporate resilience,” Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and European Council President António Costa wrote successful their EPC acme invitation letter.

The last summit, hosted by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, an ardent protagonist of U.S. President Donald Trump, was dominated by the concerns and opportunities that mightiness originate successful the aftermath of Trump's reelection.

Albania hosts a large acme days aft election

Rama's governing Socialist Party won Albania’s May 11 parliamentary election, attracting voters who enactment the country’s agelong and somewhat uphill effort to articulation the European Union. The ballot secured a 4th word for Rama.

The premier curate said that the acme is simply a constituent of pridefulness for Albania, and an “inspiration and information to proceed further on.”

His Socialist Party says it tin present EU membership successful 5 years.

The EPC forum is Macron's brainchild, and was backed by erstwhile German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, aiming to boost information and prosperity crossed the continent. But critics claimed it was an effort by them to enactment the brakes connected EU enlargement.

The 2022 inaugural acme progressive the EU's 27 subordinate countries, aspiring partners successful the Balkans and Eastern Europe, arsenic good arsenic neighbors similar the U.K. — the lone state to person near the EU — and Turkey.

Russia is the 1 large European powerfulness not invited, on with Belarus, its neighbour and protagonist successful the warfare with Ukraine.

The adjacent EPC gathering volition instrumentality spot successful Denmark aboriginal this year.

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Lorne Cook reported from Brussels.