(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg’s daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. Sign up here to get it in your inbox every weekday morning.

With less than three weeks to go until the European Union prepares to shrink for the first time in its history, the bloc’s governments are debating the next wave of expansion. While they had little trouble holding a united front on the terms of Britain’s departure, member states are split over the conditions that should be attached to any new admissions. Divisions will be laid bare in Luxembourg today, where ministers are due to decide whether to open accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia. With France digging in its heels against the immediate start of formal enlargement talks, the best the two Balkan nations can expect is a fudge — if that.

What’s Happening

Brexit Endgame | European affairs ministers also discuss Brexit in Luxembourg this morning with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier, but their meeting is likely to come too early to allow a final assessment of a potential deal before this week’s summit. Negotiations in Brussels will continue throughout the day as the two sides try to agree on how far Northern Ireland will be detached from the EU’s customs union, though the Finnish presidency of the EU has conceded that an agreement may not be possible this week.

Summit Prep | Ministers will also sign off on the communique for this week’s summit, in which leaders will commit to “lead the way in a socially fair green transition” as a response to the “existential threat posed by climate change,” according to the draft we’ve seen. You’ll have to wait until December though for concrete commitments — such as moving to zero emissions. 

Green Funding | The greening of European policies is gathering steam, with the European Investment Bank meeting today on its new energy lending policy. The big question is whether the strategy will get support from Germany, which has led efforts to soften the planned rules and allow financing of some natural-gas projects.

Conte’s Comeuppance | Having outmaneuvered Matteo Salvini’s populists, Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte is being dragged into an intrigue offstage that could ultimately pose a greater threat to his position. Italy, it has emerged, was a key link in Donald Trump’s attempts to discredit his enemies in Washington and Conte may have bent the rules in an effort to curry favor with the U.S. president.

Encore Une Fois | Another attempt at structural reform is about to be pursued by Emmanuel Macron in France, with plans due to be unveiled today. You may think you have seen this movie before, but this story is a trailer to the sequel.

In Case You Missed It

Sort-Of Ban | The EU is ramping up pressure on President Recep Erdogan to halt his incursion into Syria by pledging to restrict arms sales. It’s mostly a symbolic escalation, not applying to existing contracts, as the bloc is still counting on the Turkish leader to uphold an agreement forged in 2016 to restrict the flow of migrants heading west. Meantime, U.S. President Donald Trump, also announced sanctions against Turkey, which are equally lenient. 

Separatist Sentences | The leaders of the Spanish separatist movement received stiff sentences for their roles in 2017’s attempted breakaway. Of the nine activists, former Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras was handed the longest jail term — 13 years — in a verdict that sparked protests in Barcelona and even an intervention from Pep Guardiola, manager of English Premier League powerhouse Manchester City. 

Frozen Fries | The EU has a chip on its shoulder over Colombia imposing anti-dumping duties on frozen fries exported from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. Trade chief Cecilia Malstrom said that such levies were “completely unjustified” and that the bloc was launching a trade dispute with the WTO. Do you want sauce with that?

Polish Gloom | For a party that just achieved their country’s best showing in a parliamentary election since the fall of communism, Poland’s ruling nationalists are unusually glum. Wojciech Moskwa and Marek Strzelecki try to make sense of it. 

Chart of the Day

The world loses about $400 billion of food before it even gets delivered to stores, according to the United Nations. Some 14% of all food produced is lost annually, with central and southern Asia, North America and Europe accounting for the biggest shares. Food wastage is drawing increased scrutiny because of the contribution to greenhouse gas emissions and as more than 820 million people are estimated to go hungry each day.

Today’s Agenda

All times CET.

• European affairs ministers meet in Luxembourg to prepare leaders’ summit, Brexit, whether to start accession negotiations with Albania and the Republic of North Macedonia
• 4:30 p.m. Telephone press briefing with Robert Strayer, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber and International Communications and Information Policy, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs at the U.S Department of State on 5G security risks
• NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will have a bilateral meeting with the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson
• EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini delivers the 2019 Cyril Foster Lecture at Oxford University
• IMF updates World Economic Outlook before annual meetings in Washington DC2

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--With assistance from John Ainger and Ewa Krukowska.

To contact the author of this story: Nikos Chrysoloras in Brussels at nchrysoloras@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Heather Harris at hharris5@bloomberg.net, Andrew Blackman

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