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- Ελληνικά
The portfolios in the European Commission that we are interested in are those where the Republic of Cyprus will have added value, President of the Republic Mr. Nikos Christodoulides, who said that by August 30 he will respond in writing to a letter from the President of the European Commission.
In his statements to journalists, while attending the AHEPA dinner in Larnaca, the President of the Republic said: "I made announcements publicly. There is a decision of the Council of Ministers, in September it will be discussed in the Defence Committee of the Parliament, all parties agree, and the issue is considered closed. Because in our effort to make a semi-professional army, the SYOs are a key component and it is for this reason that we took up the issue from the very first moment. There is a decision of the Council of Ministers and in September it will be discussed in the Defence Committee and we will move forward."
Asked if he had received a letter from the President of the European Commission regarding the portfolios of the Commissioners, President Christodoulides replied in the affirmative, adding: "I received a letter saying thatby August 30 I have to reply. It is a letter that was sent to all the leaders of the European Council. From then on, I am in telephone contact with the President of the Commission regarding the portfolios of interest to the Republic of Cyprus and on the basis of our discussion I will reply in writing."
Asked to say which portfolios are of interest to us, the President of the Republic said that they are "portfolios in which the Republic of Cyprus will have added value. It is these three four portfolios in which our knowledge will be helpful and supportive to the European Union (EU) that I am discussing with the President of the Commission. The decision that will be taken in relation to the portfolio that will be given to the Cypriot Commissioner will be the one that will determine the name. It is very important that the person who will participate in the European Commission on behalf of the Republic of Cyprus knows the subject matter very well in order to be able to respond successfully."
Regarding the terminal, and asked whether the Republic of Cyprus intends to conduct its own investigation, President Christodoulides said: "No, there is an investigation by the European Union Prosecutor's Office . And because I hear and see things in relation to why we did not announce it, I would like to clarify that if we were to announce anything before the European Union Prosecutor's Office, it might be considered interference on the part of the Republic of Cyprus. And it is for this reason that the announcement was made today, immediately after the announcement of the Prosecutor's Office. We support the investigation that is being carried out in relation to this particular licensing and the management that was subsequently carried out by ETYFA. It is a very important issue, a very important challenge that we have undertaken to manage this very difficult situation."
And depending on the findings, there may be other negative developments in relation to how the EU supported this particular project."
In response to a journalist's remark that after his statement that the project should not have been given to the consortium to which it was given, AKEL unleashed accusations against him, the President of the Republic said: "It is a pity that AKEL did not know that the decision on licensing did not go through the Council of Ministers. And apart from that, I was not the one who administered it. It is ETYFA, a company that was made under DEFA.
With absolute respect to all parties, they can criticise me every day, I take into account the criticism from everyone, but what I am interested in at the end of the day is the substance. And I focus on that."
(PM/AS/MS)
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