(From left) Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez, Saint Vincent and Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attend a joint news conference at the end of the third EU-CELAC summit that brings together leaders of the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, in Brussels, Belgium, July 18, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

The European Union (EU) said on Tuesday that Europe's slave-trading past inflicted "untold suffering" on millions of people and hinted at the need for reparations for what it described as a "crime against humanity".

From the 15th to the 19th century, at least 12.5 million Africans were kidnapped and forcibly transported by mostly European ships and sold into slavery. Almost half were taken by Portugal to Brazil.

The idea of paying reparations or making other amends for slavery has a long history but the movement is gaining momentum worldwide.

Leaders of EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) met in Brussels this week for a two-day summit.

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As the event started on Monday, Ralph Gonsalves, premier of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the current holder of CELAC's presidency, said he wanted the summit's final statement to include language on the "historical legacies of native genocide and enslavement of African bodies" and "reparatory justice".

The plan demands a repatriation program that would allow people to relocate to African nations if they want to and support from European nations to tackle public health and economic crises

But some European governments were wary of proposed language on reparations, diplomats said.

EU and CELAC agreed on one paragraph that acknowledged and "profoundly" regretted the "untold suffering inflicted on millions of men, women and children as a result of the transatlantic slave trade".

It said slavery and the transatlantic slave trade were "appalling tragedies ... not only because of their abhorrent barbarism but also in terms of their magnitude". Slavery was a "crime against humanity", it said.

READ MORE: Portugal should apologize, confront past role in slavery

In the statement, adopted by leaders of both sides, the CELAC referred to a 10-point reparation plan by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), which, among other measures, urges European countries to formally apologize for slavery.

The plan demands a repatriation program that would allow people to relocate to African nations if they want to and support from European nations to tackle public health and economic crises. It also calls for debt cancellation.

The CARICOM reparations commission "sees the persistent racial victimization of the descendants of slavery and genocide as the root cause of their suffering today", the plan said.

Earlier this month, Dutch King Willem-Alexander apologized for the Netherlands' historic involvement in slavery and in April King Charles gave his support to research that would examine the British monarchy's links to slavery.

READ MORE: Dutch king apologizes for country's slavery past

In Portugal, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said his country should apologize for its role in the transatlantic slave trade but critics said apologies were not enough and practical measures were essential to address the past.