Heads of state from all 27 EU countries are due at the European Council building in Brussels at 8.30 CET, with the meeting set to start at 10.00 CET. Talks are expected to cover Ukraine, including a battlefield update from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, then European security and defence. Hybrid threats are expected to take up much of that session, and migration is on the lunch agenda. European Council President António Costa and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are expected to hold a press conference.
A separate push from last night did not pass. Slovakia, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland, backed by Italy and Greece, wanted the next Emissions Trading System (ETS2) delayed until 2030. Diplomats said Costa could not broker a compromise after hours of talks, citing the complexity of the file and technical problems with printers. The six countries did get an impact assessment into the official summit conclusions, urging the European Commission to do more about rising electricity prices.