The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the President of the
European Council António Costa met in Downing Street this
afternoon.
In their first meeting, the two leaders affirmed the intention to
strengthen the relationship between the United Kingdom and the
European Union, agreeing on the vital importance of closer
collaboration between like-minded partners at an increasingly
volatile time for the world.
The President invited the Prime Minister to attend a session of
the informal meeting of the EU leaders in Brussels on 3 February.
The Prime Minister was pleased to accept the invitation and
looked forward to discussing enhanced strategic co-operation with
the EU, notably on defence.
The two leaders also discussed current geopolitical challenges.
They reiterated their unwavering commitment to providing
continued political, financial, economic, humanitarian, military
and diplomatic support to Ukraine and its people for as long as
it takes and as intensely as needed.
They also discussed the situation and the latest developments in
the Middle East. Turning to Syria, they agreed on the importance
of ensuring a peaceful transition towards long-term political
stability following the fall of Assad's brutal regime.
They reaffirmed that the Withdrawal Agreement, including the
Windsor Framework and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, are
the foundation of relations between the UK and EU, and restated
their joint commitment to the full and faithful implementation of
those agreements.
They also looked ahead to the first EU-UK Summit in early 2025,
agreeing this would provide an important opportunity to make
further progress on key areas to deliver tangible benefits for
the people of the UK and the EU.
