EU leaders who will meet on Friday in Brussels are to discuss the implications of events in Egypt and Tunisia for Middle East security, EU officials said.
The summit had been scheduled to mainly discuss energy and innovation, but the uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen have forced European Union Council President Herman Van Rompuy to change the agenda.
'We will exchange views on the latest events in Egypt and Tunisia and their implications for the region itself and the European Union,' Van Rompuy wrote in his letter of invitation to EU leaders.
On Monday, EU Foreign Ministers urged the Egyptian authorities to embark on an “orderly transition” through a broad-based government leading to a genuine process of substantial democratic reform with full respect for the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms, paving the way for free and fair elections.
But several ministers warned against "radicalism and extremism", a takeover by Islamists in the Middle east country.
They carefully refrained from commenting on the future of President Hosny Mubarak, saying that that was a decision for the Egyptian people.