MNI POLITICAL RISK ANALYSIS – Week Ahead 30 May-5 June

All timings subject to change. Editor’s Note: The next Political Risk Week Ahead will be published the week of 13 June.

Monday 30 May:

• European Union: Special meeting of the European Council opens in Brussels. Starts at 1600CET (1000ET, 1500BST), arrivals from 1400CET (0800ET, 1300BST). EU member state leaders are set to discuss the situation of the war in Ukraine, EU defence issues, and the EU’s new energy plan ‘Re-Power EU’. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will address leaders via videolink in the evening. Should permanent representatives have reached an agreement on the latest package of sanctions on Russia they could be signed off. However, if not the issue is unlikely to be addressed directly by leaders.
• China:Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits Fiji as part of a 10-day trip to South Pacific Island nations. Wang will take part in the second China-Pacific Island Countries Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Fiji. Travels to East Timor on Thursday. Pacific Island nations have come into increasing focus in Beijing and the West as both sides seek to enhance and broaden their security networks in the Indo-Pacific. Major concern, particularly in Australia, that closer relations between China and Pacific Island nations could pose a security risk.
• EU-UK: European Commission Executive VP Maroš Šefčovič visits Berlin for talks with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and other senior officials on the status of talks with the UK over the Northern Ireland protocol. The German government has been one of the most hard-line in its refusal to countenance a re-opening of the protocol negotiations as demanded by the UK government.
• UK (Northern Ireland):Northern Ireland assembly is recalled in an attempt to elect a Speaker. No business can proceed until a Speaker is elected, but the Democratic Unionist Party has stated that it will continue to block the operations of the assembly and the power-sharing executive until the Northern Ireland protocol is amended to its satisfaction or jettisoned.
• United States, Colombia: Public holiday for Memorial Day, Ascension Day.

MNI POLITICAL RISK ANALYSIS – Week Ahead 30 May-5 Jun.pdf