European Council meeting – October 21-22, 2021

Energy, COVID-19, Rule of Law, Trade, Climate, Migration and the Digital Transformation discussed

EU Heads of State or Government met in Brussels to discuss the current hike in energy prices which is challenging the post-pandemic recovery and severely affecting citizens and businesses.

Leaders also discussed the current COVID-19 situation, especially regarding vaccine hesitancy and disinformation. International solidarity, to ensure the speedy delivery of vaccines to countries most in need, and action to ensure better preparedness for pandemics in the future, were also on the agenda.

Other topics discussed by the European Council members were the Rule of Law and trade as the most effective instrument for the EU’s global influence,

The European Council reiterated the commitment by the EU and its Member States to continue scaling up their climate financing and called on other developed countries to urgently increase their contribution, ahead of the Glasgow Climate Summit COP 26and COP 15 on biodiversity.

Migration was also on the agenda in terms of the implementation of the June European Council conclusions on the external dimension of migration, in particular when it comes to financing, and the effective control of external borders.

Finally, EU leaders discussed Europe's digital transformation, through providing additional guidance on the digital agenda, including cyber security and connectivity, and gave a political push to work on existing and future proposals and initiatives.

Click here for the European Council Conclusions – 21–22/10/2021.