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The holding of the workshop, organised in Nicosia by the Ministry of Energy with the participation of hydrocarbon companies operating in the region, is an indication of how high on the Government's priorities is the exploitation of natural gas, President of the Republic Mr. Nicos Christodoulides.
In his statements to journalists, after greeting the opening of the Workshop, and asked what Cyprus aims to achieve by holding the Workshop, President Christodoulides said that "it is an indication of how high on our priorities is the exploitation of natural gas. Two and a half months after taking office as the new Government we are presenting a clear orientation.
There are three main facts. The first is the high electricity prices on the domestic market, the second is the EU's effort to decouple from Russian gas and the third is the prospects of the Eastern Mediterranean in combination with the excellent relations that the Republic of Cyprus has with the neighbouring states.
Our strategy aims to bring all these three facts together, with the primary objective, of course, being the domestic market. We are accountable, we have an obligation to the citizens of the Republic of Cyprus, and at the same time, to use the opportunity that exists right now at the European level to strengthen the EU's effort to decouple from Russian gas.
So, to bring these two together, using the prospects of the Eastern Mediterranean and the excellent relations with the neighbouring states."
Asked about the comparative advantages of Cyprus, the President of the Republic said that "the Republic of Cyprus is an EU member state and today the Workshop is precisely to present the added value of exploiting the Republic of Cyprus.
The solution of the Republic of Cyprus does not negate the other options. We have excellent relations with the neighbouring states, we have spoken and the experts have spoken and will continue to speak about the need to create synergies that at the end of the day will benefit all the states in the region and the EU itself."
Asked how the plan submitted last Friday by Chevron is in line with our wishes, the President of the Republic said that "it is what we are discussing. It is important that there is a development plan, finally, you understand how important it is for us to have a development plan, there has already been a first contact, Chevron is expecting from us and our comments on their proposal will be given to them immediately and it is all within the framework that the Workshop is taking place today.
There are companies here that operate in our region, companies that believe in the prospect of the Eastern Mediterranean and it is precisely in order to announce our final decisions that all this is happening. We have the plan, the planning, the consultations have progressed to a considerable extent and our goal is first the internal market, to respond to what the Cypriot citizens expect from us, and at the same time to take advantage of the international circumstances."
Asked whether the Cypriot Government is in constant coordination with the Government of Israel, the President of the Republic said that "we are in discussion with all Governments. I would like to remind you that I visited Egypt and Israel accompanied by the Minister of Energy, who will go to Israel in the next few days and, yes, we are in coordination with the neighbouring Governments, we have excellent relations and we are discussing this planning."
Asked to refer to the elections in Turkey, the President of the Republic said that "I think it is an important milestone that has been completed with the election of Mr. Erdogan. I want to take today's opportunity to congratulate him on his re-election and to underline once again our readiness to resume talks from where they left off in Crans-Montana. You understand that after the completion of the electoral process, our effort enters a second stage, because it was a milestone and we hope that there will be developments soon."
Asked whether the US Ambassador's remarks in an interview satisfy Nicosia, the President said "I welcome the statements of the US Ambassador on all issues. I believe that her statements on all issues are important and in line with our approach. Both on the issue of sanctions and the reaction of the Republic of Cyprus, but also with regard to the future of our bilateral relations, which have developed in recent years to a very significant degree, in the field of defence, security, political relations, consultations, and our plan - we have already started to implement it - is to have these kinds of developments, and for Cypriot society to understand this new level of relations between the Republic of Cyprus and the United States.
I will give two examples. We have already, after the first contact that we had with the US Ambassador, received the road map in relation to the issue of visa waiver for Cypriot citizens who choose to travel to the US, I have appointed a coordinator, because you understand that many Ministries are involved, who is now working with the Ministries and the US authorities to move forward.
Another area in which we are coordinating with the US Government is the attraction of US investments in Cyprus, we are working in coordination so that we can soon have some trade missions from the US side, which missions see the added value of investing in Cyprus, and not only in Cyprus, but more broadly in the region."
Finally, asked if there is a timetable for the conclusion of the discussions on the visa waiver, the President of the Republic replied in the affirmative."
Finally, asked if there is a timetable for the conclusion of the discussions on the visa waiver, the President of the Republic replied in the affirmative.
(PM/NG/SX)
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