Around 50 heads of state and government will gather in Dublin on Thursday, 12 November 2026, for the ninth summit of the European Political Community (EPC), the largest gathering of European leaders ever held in Ireland. The meeting takes place at the Convention Centre Dublin under the theme “A strong, secure and connected Europe”, chosen by the Irish presidency of the Council of the EU.

The summit brings together leaders from across the continent, whether or not their countries belong to the European Union, alongside the heads of key European and international institutions. It will be chaired by Taoiseach Micheál Martin, who is also hosting a dinner for the visiting leaders at the National Gallery of Ireland on the evening of 12 November. An informal meeting of EU leaders only follows at the same venue on Friday, 13 November.

Ukraine dominates the agenda

The Dublin meeting will focus largely on the security challenges facing the continent, and above all on Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to attend, with several bilateral meetings with him scheduled during the day, and the aim of the gathering is to reaffirm support for the Ukrainian leader. The summit opens as US-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine take place in Abu Dhabi on 10 and 11 November, and Ukraine will be, in the words of one French source, “an underlying subject throughout the meeting”.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has again been invited to the summit, underlining the forum’s reach beyond Europe itself. The EPC was launched in Prague in October 2022, months after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as a forum for political dialogue and cooperation across the wider European family.

Macron to table security principles

French President Emmanuel Macron will use the Dublin meeting to put forward a proposal for key principles concerning the future of European security, according to a source at the Élysée Palace. The aim, the source said, is to establish in a broad format shared principles through which Europeans demonstrate that they are taking greater responsibility for their own security, and to define common objectives flowing from those principles — from strategic and industrial questions to hybrid threats and the fight against information manipulation.

Working sessions will also be devoted to Armenia and Moldova, including meetings of the “core groups” set up to support both countries, and a third meeting of the International Alliance against Drugs, an initiative launched by Rome and Paris, is expected to take place on 12 November. Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset will use the summit to examine the continent’s shared challenges around security, stability and democratic resilience, including a round table on ensuring the security and defence of a democratic Europe.

EU leaders meet the next day

Ukraine, and in particular the financing of military support for the country, is also expected to feature at the informal meeting of the EU’s 27 leaders on 13 November. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz asked European Council President António Costa on 6 November to put the matter on the agenda.

Dublin is preparing for a major security operation around the two days of meetings, with disruption expected across the city centre and on routes to Dublin Airport from 10 to 13 November. Ireland’s police force, An Garda Síochána, has also put a maritime exclusion zone in place in the coastal area beside Dublin City from 11 to 14 November. Reports say a planned 24-hour stoppage by Irish civil servants on 12 November could add to the disruption if it goes ahead. The Agence Europe report on the summit and the Irish government’s official summit page both confirm the programme for the two days.