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On the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA)

Full title

On the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA)

Report A-10-2026-0029 · 05948/2025 – C100345/2025 – 2024/0324(NLE)

Kind
Plenary report A-10-2026-0029
Date
26 February 2026
Committee
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy
Rapporteur
Borys Budka
Dossier
2024/0324(NLE)
More facts (4)
Voted
  • 26 Mar 2026 Consent given 618 for, 6 against, 5 abstained
Formats
Official page PDF Word
Subject matter
EXT, ANCO
Reference
05948/2025 – C100345/2025 – 2024/0324(NLE)
More
Cite this page Official page (opens the official site)
Link to this page

In short

A summary of the text written by AI; ¶ opens the paragraph it rests on.

AI: In short Written by AI from the official text — check the source · deepseek-v4-flash · 4 Sept 2026

The European Parliament gives its consent to the conclusion of the Agreement between the EU and Lebanon amending the scientific cooperation agreement to allow Lebanon's continued participation in PRIMA.

Position. The Committee on Industry, Research and Energy recommends that Parliament give its consent to the conclusion of the Agreement.

Key points

  1. Parliament consents to the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending the scientific and technological cooperation agreement.
  2. The Agreement sets out terms and conditions for Lebanon's participation in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA).
  3. PRIMA aims to build research and innovation capacities and develop knowledge and innovative solutions in the Mediterranean, focusing on water management, farming systems, and the food value chain.
  4. Lebanon is one of 19 Participating States in PRIMA and has participated in 42 out of 269 projects since acceding in 2018.
  5. The amended Agreement enables Lebanon to continue full participation in the partnership, ensuring continuity of cooperation and addressing common challenges.
  6. The Agreement aligns with EU–Lebanon cooperation priorities, including economic recovery, youth engagement, and promotion of innovation ecosystems and entrepreneurship.

Who is affected

  • The Republic of Lebanon: continues full participation in PRIMA, with terms and conditions set by the amended Agreement.
  • EU and Lebanon research communities: benefit from sustained cooperation in water, farming, and food value chain research.

Figures and deadlines

  • 19 Participating States in PRIMA, including Lebanon.
  • Lebanon participated in 42 out of 269 projects funded under PRIMA since 2018.

Legal basis. Article 186 and Article 218(6), second subparagraph, point (a)(v), of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

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Draft european parliament legislative resolution

on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA)

(05948/2025 – C100345/2025 – 2024/0324(NLE))

(Consent)

The European Parliament,

–having regard to the draft Council decision (05948/2025),

–having regard to the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA) (05949/2025),

–having regard to the request for consent submitted by the Council in accordance with Article 186 and Article 218(6), second subparagraph, point (a)(v), of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (C10-0345/2025),

–having regard to Rule 107(1) and (4), and Rule 117(7) of its Rules of Procedure,

–having regard to the recommendation of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (A10-0029/2026),

1.Gives its consent to the conclusion of the agreement;

2.Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and of the Republic of Lebanon.

Back matter, 2

Parts that accompany the text rather than belong to it: explanatory statement, annexes, opinions appended by other committees. Collapsed.

Explanatory statement 4 blocks

The Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA) aims to build research and innovation capacities and to develop knowledge and common innovative solutions in the Mediterranean area. PRIMA has proven to be a successful instrument for fostering international cooperation in research and innovation, focussing on the fields of water management, farming systems and the food value chain. In the Mediterranean, a region of strategic geopolitical relevance for the Union, PRIMA serves as a strong example of science diplomacy. The programme’s added value was confirmed by its 2023 interim evaluation, which highlighted its unique role in reinforcing research capacities and scientific integration as well as advancing the Union’s strategic objectives in the region.

The Republic of Lebanon has long been actively participating in regional scientific networks and has expressed strong interest in expanding collaboration with European research frameworks. Lebanon is among the 19 Participating States in PRIMA. Since acceding to PRIMA in 2018, Lebanon has taken part in 42 out of 269 projects funded under the instrument.

The amended Agreement will enable Lebanon to continue its full participation in the partnership, ensuring the continuity of cooperation and sustained joint efforts to address common challenges. The Agreement is also consistent with wider EU–Lebanon cooperation priorities, notably economic recovery, youth engagement, and the promotion of innovation ecosystems and entrepreneurship.

For the reasons stated above, the Rapporteur believes that it is in the Union’s interest to conclude this Agreement.

Annex: declaration of input 1 block

The rapporteur declares under his exclusive responsibility that he did not include in his report input from interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies, to be listed in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.

Procedure pages and committee votes

How the committees handled the text and how their members voted on it. Collapsed.

Procedure – committee responsible 1 block
Table from the text: Title
TitleAgreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA)
References05948/2025 – C10-0345/2025 – 2024/0324(NLE)
Date of consultation or request for consent11.12.2025
Committee(s) responsible Date announced in plenaryITRE 27.1.2026
Rapporteurs Date appointedBorys Budka 29.1.2026
Date adopted25.2.2026
Result of final vote+: –: 0:80 0 3
Date tabled26.2.2026
Final vote by roll call by the committee responsible 3 blocks

80 · For

ECR
Elena Donazzan, Pietro Fiocchi, Ondřej Krutílek, Marion Maréchal, Daniel Obajtek, Diego Solier, Beata Szydło, Francesco Torselli, Kris Van Dijck, Francesco Ventola
EPP
Wouter Beke, Hildegard Bentele, Alexander Bernhuber, Borys Budka, Pilar del Castillo Vera, Raúl de la Hoz Quintano, Christian Ehler, Jan Farský, Michalis Hadjipantela, Niels Flemming Hansen, Adam Jarubas, Seán Kelly, Stefan Köhler, Fernando Navarrete Rojas, Mirosława Nykiel, Virgil-Daniel Popescu, Aura Salla, Paulius Saudargas, Susana Solís Pérez, Tomas Tobé, Matej Tonin, Angelika Winzig
Patriots
Barbara Bonte, Paolo Borchia, Jaroslav Bžoch, Ondřej Knotek, Fabrice Leggeri, Jorge Martín Frías, Jana Nagyová, Pascale Piera, Silvia Sardone, Raffaele Stancanelli, Pierre-Romain Thionnet
Renew
João Cotrim De Figueiredo, Sigrid Friis, Bart Groothuis, Christophe Grudler, Elisabetta Gualmini, Ivars Ijabs, Michał Kobosko, Morten Løkkegaard, Brigitte van den Berg, Yvan Verougstraete
S&D
Vivien Costanzo, Matthias Ecke, Sofie Eriksson, Niels Fuglsang, Lina Gálvez, Bruno Gonçalves, Giorgio Gori, Eero Heinäluoma, César Luena, Yannis Maniatis, Dan Nica, Thomas Pellerin-Carlin, Tsvetelina Penkova, Elena Sancho Murillo, Bruno Tobback, Nicola Zingaretti
The Left
Marc Botenga, Marina Mesure, Gaetano Pedulla', Anthony Smith, Dario Tamburrano
Greens
Sara Matthieu, Ville Niinistö, Diana Riba i Giner, Benedetta Scuderi, Nicolae Ștefănuță, Marie Toussaint

0 · Against

3 · Abstained

ESN
Tomasz Froelich, Volker Schnurrbusch
No group
Diana Iovanovici Şoşoacă

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Permalink
https://news.eu-parl.st-solutions.dev/texts/A-10-2026-0029
Official source
Data source
Licensed CC BY 4.0.
Retrieved
25 September 2026

Cite as

European Parliament (2026). “RECOMMENDATION on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA)”. Text, 26 March 2026. docId A-10-2026-0029, reference A10-0029/2026, procId 2024-0324. EU Parl Watch Research. https://news.eu-parl.st-solutions.dev/texts/A-10-2026-0029 (retrieved 25 September 2026). Official source: The text on the European Parliament’s website, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-10-2026-0029_EN.html. Data: EP Open Data API: document record, https://data.europarl.europa.eu/api/v2/documents/A-10-2026-0029 (CC BY 4.0).
BibTeX 
@misc{epw-text-a-10-2026-0029,
  author = {{European Parliament}},
  title = {{RECOMMENDATION on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, in the form of an Exchange of Letters, amending and supplementing the Agreement for scientific and technological cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Lebanon, setting out the terms and conditions for the participation of the Republic of Lebanon in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA)}},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-03-26},
  howpublished = {\url{https://news.eu-parl.st-solutions.dev/texts/A-10-2026-0029}},
  url = {https://news.eu-parl.st-solutions.dev/texts/A-10-2026-0029},
  urldate = {2026-09-25},
  publisher = {EU Parl Watch Research},
  note = {Text. docId A-10-2026-0029, reference A10-0029/2026, procId 2024-0324. Official source: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-10-2026-0029\_EN.html. Data: EP Open Data API: document record (CC BY 4.0)}
}