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Marios Tokas Garden Theatre, Limassol
It is with great pleasure that I join the Ministers of Defence and Transport, the Deputy Minister of Culture, the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Head of the Expatriate Service in today's ceremony, which marks the opening of the 22nd "AHEPA FAMILY SUPREME CONVENTION", which is being held for the first time in our country.
An event of immense symbolic and essential importance for us, which honours Cyprus, the entire Cypriot people and me personally, since, as I mentioned before, apart from its essential importance, it also has a strong symbolic character, as it coincides with the tragic 50th anniversary of the brutal Turkish invasion and ongoing occupation of Cyprus with all the devastating consequences and traumas it brought about.
For half a century Turkey continues to illegally occupy 36.2% of Cypriot territory, 200,000 refugees and their descendants remain forcibly displaced from their villages and towns and the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all Cypriots continue to be violated by the Turkish invader.
Fifty years on, half a century later, the grief and pain of the ongoing occupation, as well as the longing to return - despite the aspirations of some to the contrary - to our ancestral homes remains in all our souls. And it is precisely in this context that the organisation of this year's AHEPA Conference in Cyprus has a special connotation. It is a meaningful expression of solidarity and a resounding message of support for Cyprus from Greeks everywhere.
The presence of all of you is of particular importance to us, especially at this time when, as a semi-inherited homeland, we honour the memory of all those who fought and sacrificed for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus. At a time when we honour our missing and stranded. At a time when we reaffirm in the strongest possible way our readiness to do everything humanly possible to end the occupation, to liberate and reunite our homeland. A struggle which, from the first day I took office, has been the highest priority for our Government and for me personally.
Half a century after 1974, the violation of the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus and the occupation of a significant part of its territories is not an event relegated to the annals of the past, nor is it a recurring rhetoric. The continued presence of more than 40 000 Turkish soldiers in European Cyprus and the consequences of the occupation that we are experiencing on a daily basis constitute a cold reality.
All the unacceptable and reprehensible things that we have seen happening in Ukraine over the past few years, to which the international community is rightly reacting in a condemnatory manner, to which Cyprus and Greece are rightly on the right side of history, were committed 50 years ago in European Cyprus and half a century later we continue to experience their consequences.
And to continue from what was said about the changing international system that we live in today, in which unfortunately international law is not the one that determines the policies of states, we live in an anarchic international system, in a system in which the policies of states are determined by their interests and this is what we as the Government of the Republic of Cyprus are doing.
In contrast to Turkey's almost daily revisionist rhetoric and action, we, in addition to our continuous efforts for the resumption of the talks and our clear political will, at the same time, with actions and not with words, promote the importance and role of the Republic of Cyprus at the regional and European level. We exploit our country's comparative geopolitical advantages to promote the stability, security and prosperity of all countries in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region, a region of particular geostrategic importance.
We are attempting, and I believe we are largely succeeding, to identify our interests with the interests of powerful actors in the international system, demonstrating in practice the importance, the role, the added value of the Republic of Cyprus.
In this context, and taking advantage of our excellent relations with all neighbouring states, we did not hesitate, as a small country under occupation, in a difficult and very complex environment such as the one we are experiencing today in the wider Middle East, to take initiatives aimed at providing solutions to issues of international interest. The most recent example, of which, yes, we are particularly proud, is our successful actions to create a maritime corridor to provide humanitarian aid to the affected civilian population in Gaza.
With such initiatives we demonstrate in practice that we are not part of the problems. We are, through our actions, part of the solution to difficult, complex, complicated problems and challenges.
It is precisely from this perspective that the strengthening and further development of our strategic cooperation with the United States is a key pillar of our aforementioned endeavour. An effort which was intensified during my term as Foreign Minister. In 2018, we signed the first agreement, the Statement of Intent to strengthen our relations and it culminated in the recent agreement in Washington to establish a strategic dialogue with the US. A conscious effort that we believe serves the interests of the Republic of Cyprus, an effort that began and would not have succeeded without your decisive contribution.
I am strongly convinced that highlighting the geostrategic role of our country, highlighting it not with words, with fine statements, but with actions, as a pillar of stability and security in this region also strengthens our efforts to achieve a viable and workable solution, to achieve our ultimate goal, which is none other than the resolution of the Cyprus problem, liberation and reunification, in a state which, yes, can function, can take decisions and can play the role it currently plays in the region.
In the collective effort of the Government and the entire Cypriot people for the resolution of our national problem, for liberation, for the prevalence of conditions of security and prosperity, all of you, the expatriate Greeks, have been a constant and reliable supporter over time. I know from personal experience that AHEPA and all of you have a prominent role, I would say a leading role, in this effort.
Your voice and contribution has been instrumental in keeping our national issue alive for 50 years on the international agenda, in the countries where you are hosted, in the Common Opinion of the countries where you operate. Your role has been and remains decisive in ensuring international support for our positions and aspirations, in promoting the interests of Cyprus and in strengthening the relations of Hellenism in general with third countries and peoples.
As a student in 1993 when I met Savvas Tsivikos in New York, as a diplomat in 1999, as a Government Spokesman and then as Foreign Minister, I have experienced first-hand your tireless and selfless efforts to promote the interests of Cyprus and wider Hellenism.
As President of the Republic of Cyprus, I would like to take this opportunity tonight to express to you, on behalf of both the Cypriot people and the Government, our gratitude for all that you have done, for your enduring contribution to our occupied homeland, for your love and solidarity.
And if anyone should be honoured tonight it is all the members of AHEPA. And it is in this context that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Expatriate Service, as well as all the Ministries and Departments of the Republic involved, the Press and Information Office and many Ministries, such as Transport, and Deputy Ministries, such as Culture, Tourism, as well as the Church of Cyprus have willingly assisted in the planning and implementation of the programme of your Conference, so as to ensure, among many other things, the traditional warm Cypriot hospitality as a minimum sign of our appreciation to Hellenism, the work of AHEPA and all of you.
102 years ago, the Greeks of the Diaspora in the USA joined forces and their voice through the founding of AHEPA. They pledged then to fight vigorously for the protection of human rights of all citizens and against all forms of discrimination that degrade the human condition.
And they succeeded. We can say with certainty 102 years later that you have fully achieved your goals.
Your Organization, and you should all be proud, is today an important and dynamic body that promotes all the ideals and ideals that are in essence the foundations of Greek Culture, of which we are proud. Your Organization is a beacon for our youth everywhere, for the right path of the thinking, integrated and active citizen, as Socrates has very aptly described him. For a united Hellenism, for the good of Cyprus, Greece and our expatriates around the world.
It is with deep appreciation to all members of AHEPA and to each and every one of you individually that I declare the opening of the AHEPA Congress, expressing the wish that with your help our next meeting will take place in a more joyful environment where we will all celebrate together the liberation and reunification of Cyprus.
(PM/GC/EATH)
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