David Lammy to meet EU foreign ministers to discuss Middle East crisis and Iran threat

The UK says the meeting is the start of more regular engagement with the Foreign Affairs Council

The UK's Foreign Secretary David Lammy is to meet the EU's foreign ministers to discuss security. PA Wire

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The UK’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy is to meet the EU's foreign ministers to discuss the security challenges facing Europe including the Middle East and Iran.

Mr Lammy has been invited to take seat at the table of the Foreign Affairs Council with all 27 EU Foreign Ministers when it meets in Luxembourg on Monday.

The FCDO says the UK’s attendance at the meeting will be part of more regular engagement.

The meeting will discuss how the UK and the EU can work together to deal with the escalating crisis in the Middle East, including the continuing threat posed by Iran, said Britain’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).

The discussions will also include meeting the challenge of Russian aggression and interference across the continent.

Mr Lammy has been invited by Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and said ahead of the meeting that “UK security is indivisible from European security”.

“This government is determined to reset our relationships and deepen ties with our European partners in order to make us all safer,” he said.

“This visit is an opportunity for the UK to be back at the table, discussing the most pressing global issues with our closest neighbours and tackle the seismic challenges we all face.”

Plans for closer working between the EU and the UK international and security matters will to be set out after discussions with Mr Borrell, said the ministry.

Mr Lammy last week visited Bahrain and Jordan, where he pushed calls for de-escalation in the Gaza war that is threatening to also engulf Lebanon.

The foreign secretary’s trip to meet EU ministers comes amid growing frustration at the Labour government’s foreign policy in the Middle East, which critics in the UK say is a middle ground that satisfies no one.

Some fear the government has been cornered into making decisions that are driven by legal technicalities rather than political views.