The first meeting, which is initially set for Tuesday, March 1, at DIKO's offices, is not expected to be enlightening enough, as it will have more the character of an official premiere of the dialogue. After all, Stefanos Stefanou and Nicolas Papadopoulos are not expecting the official meeting to explore each other's intentions and the de facto red lines that exist, however much they may not prevail. All this has largely been clarified during the intensive informal contacts they have had in recent days away from the spotlight.
They want to but can they?
Stefanos Stefanou and Nicolas Papadopoulos have as a common starting point the desire for their parties to work together, on the basis of political decisions at the highest level, with a mandate conditioned on a change of government. Beyond this position, however, in order to achieve the political marriage, serious concessions are needed on both sides and, above all, a personality who will be able to become the agent of cooperation as a presidential candidate. The leaders of both parties appear willing to make concessions on both sides. Party prestige must de facto be put to one side because neither AKEL nor DIKO can easily fight the electoral battle with claims without political alliances.
Candidate
The hard part begins with the persons who could claim the nomination of a candidate for the presidency of the Republic with guarantees of success, away from dangerous risks or moves that do not ensure the minimum conditions for success. The presidential election is critical for both political leaders, who have set the bar high, preparing their people for a successful outcome. While Stefanos Stefanou makes it clear that he wants a winning option and is in no way satisfied with a dignified defeat, Nicolas Papadopoulos has several times publicly appeared confident that in 2023 DIKO will be either in government or in coalition.
Plan B
At the first official meeting, Stefanou and Papadopoulos will talk about it alone, with no third parties present. It is expected that they will assign their partners to discuss the issues that could form the basis of a possible cooperation. After their meeting, the leaders of the two parties will hold separate meetings with the leaders of the other opposition parties to explore the possibility of cooperation with them as well. If things turn out positively, then there will be a broad cooperation of parties, which will make the electoral battle a worthy one. Otherwise, it is not excluded that there will only be cooperation between two or more parties, or if the effort fails for good, then the alternative will be that of going it alone, which neither party wants and which will be the last resort that both AKEL and DIKO reject.
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