President Tajani: The European Parliament backs the UfM to strengthen Euro-Mediterranean regional cooperation

• During his official visit to the European Parliament, UfM Designated Secretary General, Nasser Kamel, held talks with the President of the European Parliament and of the Bureau of the Parliamentary-Assembly of the UfM, Antonio Tajani.
  
• Secretary General Kamel presented the activities and the ambitions of the UfM in a meeting with the EP Delegation to the Parliamentary-Assembly of the UfM and met with a number of EU parliamentarians from different political groups, members of Delegations of the European Parliament (EP) dedicated to Mediterranean policies. 

Strasbourg, 4 and 5 July 2018. The Designated Secretary General of the UfM, Nasser Kamel, held talks with the President of the European Parliament and EU parliamentarians on ways to reinforce Euro-Mediterranean regional cooperation. The meetings took place on the margins of the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

The bilateral meeting with European Parliament President Antonio Tajani, who also holds the Presidency of the Bureau of the Parliamentary Assembly of the UfM, focused on the challenges that the Euro-Mediterranean region is facing and on the best ways to collectively addressing them to foster development and cooperation on a regional level. Tajani praised the initiatives developed by the UfM and conveyed that the European Parliament, notably as the current Presidency of the Bureau of the Parliamentary Assembly of the UfM, must play an important role in promoting political dialogue and cooperation between the UfM countries.

These topics were also widely discussed in the meetings that the Designated UfM Secretary General held with other members of the European Parliament, that included David-Maria Sassoli, Vice-President of the EP replacing the President for Neighbourhood Policy (South/EUROMED /Middle East), Patrick le Hyaric, Vice-Chairman of the GUE political group and member of the Delegations of the EP to the PA-UfM and for the relations with Palestine, Inés Ayala Sender, Chairwoman of the Conference of Delegation Chairs, Chairwoman of the Delegation for the relations with the Maghreb region and AMU and member of the Delegation to the PA-UfM, Tiziana Beghin, member of the Delegation to the PA-UfM and Chairwoman of the PA-UfM’s Working Group on Financing of the Assembly and Revision of the Rules of Procedure, and Brice Hortefeux, member of the Delegation to the PA-UfM and vice-Chairman of the PA-UfM’s Committee on Economic and Financial Issues, Social Affairs and Education.

Designated Secretary General Kamel also had the opportunity to exchange views with Pietro Ducci, Director-General for External Policies of the Union at the European Parliament and members of Euromed and Middle East Unit that follow-up on the works of the Parliamentary-Assembly of the UfM and its synergies with the remaining UfM Ecosystem.

The UfM Designated Secretary General further participated in the meeting of the EP’s Delegation to the PA-UfM, where he was invited to present his vision on the 10 years of the Union for the Mediterranean and his ambitions for the consolidation and reinforcement of this unique platform for political dialogue and regional cooperation for the years to come.