Welcome from the Chair

Welcome to the site of the European Parliament's Delegation for relations with the Mashreq countries.

As the elected Chair of the Delegation, I have the honour of presiding over our regular meetings in Brussels and Strasbourg, and setting the agenda for the work with our counterparts in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. Through Inter-Parliamentary Meetings (IPM) the Delegation works to reinforce parliamentary democracy and dialogue with our fellow parliamentarians in the region. The Delegation also closely follows the evolution of the situation in Syria and the European Union's initiatives on humanitarian support for the Syrian people and on the future of Syria.

It is important that the European Parliament accompany and scrutinise the European Union's relationship with the Mashreq countries, and the Delegation for relations with the Mashreq countries plays an important role in that respect. The role of the Delegation is to monitor and strengthen the relations between the European Union and the Mashreq countries, and to contribute to the work carried out by the European Parliament's Standing Committees on matters relating to the region. This includes the implementation of the Association Agreements, the protection of Human Rights and democratic values, the implementation of recommendations formulated in the course of election observation missions, and the scrutiny of EU spending in the Mashreq countries. Through our parliamentary diplomacy, the Delegation works to improve our mutual understanding and promote the values on which the European Union is founded.

I look forward to guiding our Delegation through these shifting times and to work with my colleagues to contribute - through parliamentary diplomacy - to the strengthening of political relations between the European Union and the Mashreq countries. I hope our work will help to reinforce dialogue and cooperation for peace, democracy and development. Our work will seek to promote the deepening of the relationship between the European Parliament and the parliaments, civil society and political actors in each of the Mashreq countries.

You are welcome to attend our meetings in Brussels or Strasbourg, or to follow the livestreaming of our meetings on this website.

Isabel Santos