European Union foreign ministers are gathering in the German port of Bremen and are expected to express support for 15 British sailors detained in Iran.
Hours after the UN Security Council voiced grave concern over the sailors, the ministers are likely to issue a call for their immediate release.
One German diplomat said there had to be a signal that "enough is enough".
The ministers at the informal meeting, held twice yearly, are also expected to discuss the Middle East and Kosovo.
Police force
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country holds the EU presidency, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and the European Parliament have all condemned the detentions of the sailors in the strongest terms.
The foreign minister of Turkey, whose country is trying to intervene on the sailors' behalf, has also been invited to the meeting in Bremen.
However, there is concern that the row can only complicate the EU's longstanding efforts to persuade Iran to reach a deal over its nuclear programme.
As is customary at these meetings, no formal decisions will be taken in Bremen.
Instead, the foreign ministers of the 27 EU countries will discuss issues set to dominate their agenda for a long time to come.
They will include how to deal with the new Palestinian national unity government and how to help Kosovo after the UN determines the final status of the province.
A paper prepared for the meeting says an EU police mission - the largest of its kind ever set up by the bloc - could be in place in Kosovo for at least two years and the international community will need to raise $2bn to prop up the province's fragile economy.
(BBC News, 30/03/2007)