The EU once again urged Turkey last week to drop plans to drill for oil and gas around Cyprus and the eastern Mediterranean, saying such exploration was illegal, news wires reported. “Concrete steps towards creating an environment conducive to dialogue in good faith are needed,” EU foreign policy spokesman Peter Stano said in a statement. “The intention by Turkey to launch further exploration and drilling activities in the region goes, regrettably, in the opposite direction.”

European foreign ministers met on Monday in Brussels to discuss reviving a naval mission in the Mediterranean in order to enforce an arms embargo against Libya's warring parties, news wires reported. On Sunday Germany hosted a summit to push for a ceasefire in the country, gripped by civil war since the 2011 overthrow of dictator Moamar Gaddafi.

Britain, France and Germany announced on Tuesday they are launching a dispute mechanism against Iran for breaking its commitments under the 2015 nuclear accord, which could ultimately lead to revived sanctions against Tehran, dpa reported. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as the deal is formally known, was agreed in 2015 between Iran and world powers. It has been in jeopardy ever since the US announced its unilateral withdrawal from the deal in 2018.

The European Union's top diplomat and the foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany and Italy condemned on Tuesday Turkey's plans to send military experts and trainers to Libya to support Libya’s internationally recognized government, news wires reported.

The European Union expresses its strong concern about Turkey’s Grand National Assembly’s decision on Thursday, 2 January, to authorise military deployments in Libya, reads a statement by the spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy that was just issued.

The EU will seek a reset of EU-US trade relations on a number of contentious issues, Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan, was quoted as saying. He will meet his US counterpart, Robert Lighthizer, for the first time next month after talking to him just before Christmas. The Trump administration imposed tariffs on European steel and aluminum in mid-2018. It has done the same to $7.5bn worth of EU products over a dispute about subsidies for Airbus, and is threatening action against France over a digital services tax.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday called for more security and less unregulated migration during a visit to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia and the seat of the African Union (AU), dpa reported. "Only unity will make our continents strong in a changing world. The African Union is a partner I count on," von der Leyen said during her first visit outside Europe as the head of the EU executive.

The European Union exercises maximum diplomacy with everybody during crises. This is the natural role of the EU in support of peace, security and democracy, said the High Representative Federica Mogherini following the Foreign Affairs Council on Monday.

European countries made a new attempt on Monday to persuade Iran to stick to the 2015 nuclear deal, under which it agreed to curbs on its nuclear programme in return for the lifting of sanctions. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and foreign ministers of the European signatories of the deal - Britain, France and Germany - issued a statement urging Tehran to comply with the accord with major powers, known as the JCPOA, or face action which could include the reimposition of sanctions.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday welcomed more than 30 heads of state and government at the second annual Paris Peace Forum aimed at finding solutions to global challenges ranging from climate change and terrorism to migration and cyber security. Making an impassioned plea for multilateralism in his opening address at the Paris Peace Forum, Macron called on all delegates to come together to fight climate change, economic inequalities, terrorism, disinformation and cybercrime.