EU-Cuba Joint Council meeting. Main Results

The EU-Cuba Joint Council met for the first time on 15 May 2018. It discussed the implementation of the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement, which has been provisionally applied since November 2017.

The Joint Council held a political dialogue and exchanged views on future cooperation in key areas. The EU and Cuba agreed to start working towards the initiating of five new dialogues in key areas:

• * countering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,
• * control of conventional arms,
• * coping with unilateral coercive measures, 
• * the implementation of Agenda 2030 for sustainable development and
• * human rights.

The meeting provided an opportunity for exchanges on bilateral issues, as well as avenues for closer cooperation in fields such as energy and agriculture. Cuba's efforts to reform its economy were also discussed, as well as trade and investment between the EU and Cuba.

In addition, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Bruno Eduardo Rodríguez Parrilla touched upon regional and global issues, including the current crisis in Venezuela and EU-CELAC relations.

In the margins of the meeting, the EU and Cuba signed a financing agreement for a cooperation programme on renewable energy, to which the European Commission will contribute € 18 million. This programme will make a contribution to Cuba's energy sector with a specific attention to renewable energies and energy efficiency targets. This is the first ever financing agreement signed between the EU and the Cuban government.