Prime Minister Robert Abela met Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the fringes of informal meetings with EU leaders in Spain on Friday.

Almost 50 European leaders used a summit in the southern Spanish city of Granada to stress that they stand by Ukraine.

In Spain for the European Political Community summit, Abela and other European leaders discussed various current issues such as energy, the environment and climate change.

During the discussions, Abela made reference to last week’s MED9 meeting which was hosted in Malta, which discussed the migration issue.

Leaders from the MED9 countries – Malta, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Cyprus, France, Greece, Croatia and Slovenia – gathered in Malta where discussions led to a call for a greater focus on the bloc’s efforts to tackle migration.

On Friday, Abela called for further dialogue among the southern EU neighbourhood, looking towards a future where collaborations between the Mediterranean states can benefit all.

Emphasising that the current situation is unsustainable, Abela said the EU needs to be more proactive.

“As we also agreed during the MED9 meeting, there is a need to rebuild our relationship with the southern Mediterranean,” Abela said, insisting on an asylum system that addresses the needs of all member states.

On energy, Abela emphasised the EU’s need for interconnectivity between state members and North African countries, specifically in terms of renewable energy projects.

The summit was held between Thursday and Friday.