-
.
- Ελληνικά
President of the Republic Nicos Christodoulides described the agreement signed yesterday between Cyprus and the US as historic, which, he said, will help cooperation between the two countries in various fields, while at the same time it is a recognition of the role of the Republic of Cyprus in the wider region.
In his remarks to reporters, while attending an event of the Union of Cyprus Communities in Choirokoitia, and asked if in the light of the Cyprus-US agreement, the conditions are ripe for Cyprus to apply for NATO membership, the President of the Republic said: "You understand that this issue is not an option at this juncture, given the long-standing position of Turkey, which is a NATO member state."
Beyond that, I consider the agreement signed yesterday to be historic. Among many other things, it will help cooperation between the two countries in the fields of energy, investment and our trade relations. It is also a recognition of the role of the Republic of Cyprus in the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East as a predictable, stable, reliable partner. I believe that it is something that further strengthens the Republic of Cyprus' standing."
Asked to refer to yesterday's informal European Council meeting in Brussels, the President of the Republic said: "There was a first exchange of views, we will be in Brussels again next week. It is important to reach an agreement as soon as possible. There is a plenary session of the European Parliament in July and September. The aim is in July to have the President of the Commission approved by the European Parliament so that we can start work immediately. We have a lot of challenges ahead of us.
Next week at the European Council we will also adopt the strategic agenda of the European Union (EU), which are the priorities for the next five years, priorities that are of direct interest to us. You understand that the EU's strategic autonomy on energy, security, defence, migration, the need to strengthen competitiveness, all these issues will have to be addressed immediately.
At the same time we have elections in the US, we have elections in Britain, there is the war in Ukraine, the war in Gaza. We need as soon as possible to get the President of the Commission "through", to set up the new Commission, so that we can get to work."
(PM/EAth/GC)
Contents of this article including associated images are owned by PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
Source
