EU

Under the agreement the Cook Islands will receive almost $US7-million for allowing four European purse seiners to fish for skipjack tuna.

Traditional leader William Framhein said they had intended to deliver a message to EU officials at a public meeting Wednesday night to keep out of their seas.

But he says they were told by Deputy Prime Minister Mark Brown that he would not expose the EU representatives to them.

The ministers said they needed to know details of the US president-elect's plans but said they expected good ties.

The talks took place at a dinner in Brussels on Sunday, on the eve of a formal meeting of foreign ministers.

Ministers from Britain, France and Hungary did not attend on Sunday.

"We are looking forward to a very strong partnership with the next [US] administration," EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said.

"We have decided together to engage with the incoming administration even from this very first week of transition," she added.

The Pacific Regional Federation for Resilience Professionals (PRFRP) will boost the skills, education, training and employment opportunities for diverse professionals dedicated to climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction and maintaining ecosystem services in a highly vulnerable region.

The launch by the European Union, Pacific Community (SPC) and The University of the South Pacific (USP) took place at the Pacific Platform for Disaster Risk Management in Suva, Fiji, within the margins of Pacific Resilience Week 2016.

Objections by a Belgian region, which opposes the deal, "are for us Europeans to solve", Martin Schulz said.

He was speaking after meetings in Brussels with Canadian Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland and the head of Belgium's Wallonia region.

Ms Freeland said: "It's time for Europe to finish doing its job."

After seven years of negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (Ceta), talks broke down on Friday.

The Espad report for 2015 includes most EU countries, but not Germany or the UK, and data for Spain is incomplete.

In 2015 "current smokers" accounted for 21% of those surveyed, and the highest total was in Italy (37%).

In 1995-2015 those using alcohol in the past 30 days fell from 56% to 47%. Top in cannabis use were the Czechs (37%).

That figure for Czech teenagers reporting a lifetime experience of cannabis was higher than the level in the US - 31% in comparable surveys.

He cited the Budapest government's treatment of refugees, independence of the judiciary and freedom of the press.

"Hungary is not far away from issuing orders to open fire on refugees," he suggested.

EU leaders meet in Slovakia on Friday to discuss the union's future.

Mr Asselborn's interview with German daily Die Welt is likely to inflame passions ahead of the summit.

Sigmar Gabriel said the EU would go "down the drain" if other states followed Britain's lead and that the UK could not keep the "nice things" about Europe while taking no responsibility.

It comes as Theresa May summoned ministers for a meeting on Wednesday to discuss ideas for the UK's withdrawal.

Downing Street said Brexit was "top" of the prime minister's agenda.

Visa-free access to the EU is seen as a reward for Turkey's role in halting an influx of migrants into Europe.

But the move has been delayed because of a row over anti-terror legislation following Turkey's failed coup.

"It's up to Turkey whether there can be visa-travel or not," Mr Gabriel said.

He said Turkey was drastically distancing itself from Europe by "moving towards reintroducing the death penalty" which was a "flagrant contravention of the EU's charter of fundamental rights".

Geert Wilders, leader of the Eurosceptic Freedom Party, was among the first to congratulate his colleagues across the North Sea for securing their "Independence Day".

There are shared concerns about European immigration and Brussels bureaucracy among the Dutch electorate.

And yet, "Nexit" is by no means inevitable.

"Our interests in the internal market are even larger than the UK's interests," Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem told the BBC outside a sun-drenched Dutch parliament.

European Council President Donald Tusk said the UK could not pick and choose.

The French and German leaders also made clear that the freedom of movement of EU citizens was non-negotiable.

Immigration to the UK, particularly from poorer EU countries, was a key issue in the referendum campaign.

Some campaigners for Leave sent a clear message that the vote was about controlling immigration levels.

Outgoing UK Prime Minister David Cameron said that the issue of freedom of movement would be for the next PM and government to decide.