The 19th ministerial meeting of the Defence Initiative of the 5+5 Dialogue took place last December 13, in Lisbon under Portuguese presidency.

The representatives of the 10 member states of the dialogue attended the meeting to discuss the work carried out in 2023 and set a common 2024 agenda for the 5+5 Defence Initiative, which will be chaired by Spain.

During the meeting, members of the 5+5 Dialogue congratulated the efforts done by Portugal to increase cooperation in the region in the area of defence. Attendees also expressed solidarity with Libya and Morocco in face of the tragic natural disasters that took place last year.

The meeting also proved as an opportunity to express the need to deploy partnership strategies among the countries on both shores of the Western Mediterranean, as well as to plan realistic collaborative development programmes.

Finally, Spain unveiled its strategic plan for 2024, which is seen as an opportunity to strengthen regional integration and stability in the region. It proposed 12 activities that will be carried out throughout the year. Margarita Robles, the Spanish representative in this high-level meeting, explained the relevance of climate change and pandemics as threats that would need to be faced in a cooperative way.