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- Ελληνικά
The President of the Republic Mr.Nikos Christodoulides visited today the camp "Michael Kaili", in Pera Chorio - Nissou, on the occasion of the Christmas and New Year holidays, accompanied by the Minister of Defence Mr. Speaking to the officers and soldiers, the President of the Republic said, among other things.
My presence here today is more to thank you on behalf of the Cypriot state, the Cypriot people for all that you do so that we feel safe in our country.
One of our main objectives - and I am referring primarily to the conscripts, citing my own personal experience, having served for 26 months - is for you to realize during your service the importance of being in the army.
In my case, many years ago, I realized the importance of my service after I left the National Guard. One of our main goals is for you to realize how important your presence in the military is not only to the issue of the security of our country, but more generally to your development as members of our society.
Yesterday we had a very productive meeting with the Minister of Defense, the Chief of the National Guard, the officials of the Ministry of Defense and the GEF, during which three issues were brought to our attention. One is the officers, the personnel who are the backbone of the National Guard, and the issue of equipment and infrastructure.
We cannot go into details of what we discussed and what we decided, and there will be another meeting around mid-January as a follow-up to the previous one.
But at the present time, at a time when we are facing challenges every day particularly in relation to the buffer zone - that is why your role is even more crucial - and considering the area it covers - 13 kilometres of a very critical area - strengthening the deterrent capacity of the National Guard is something that we are working on very methodically without making any announcements.
What I have mentioned does not in any way affect our desire and efforts to liberate our country, to end the occupation, to reunite our country. I have said it many, many times, for us there is no other choice, the present state of affairs cannot be the future of our homeland, cannot be the future of the new generation of our country. Every day we see new achievements, which make the prospects for a solution to the Cyprus problem more difficult or even more difficult. But beyond the Cyprus problem, the existence of a strong National Guard is a necessity not only for the international standing of the Republic of Cyprus, but at the same time taking into account that we are an EU member state. We particularly welcome, we are trying to be protagonists in this effort that the EU has launched in recent years to strengthen the EU's defence pillar.
The Republic of Cyprus, together with other Member States, is committed to strengthening the defence arm of the EU and in this context we will continue to play our role, together with the fact that the Republic of Cyprus is located in a region of particular geostrategic importance, in a region where, unfortunately, a war is unfolding which, in any case, has only tragic consequences.
And our effort is, using our status as an EU member state, but also our excellent relations with all the neighbouring states, to do everything possible, always within our capabilities, to end this war as soon as possible, but at the same time, until the international community achieves this goal, to help address the tragic humanitarian consequences that arise on a daily basis.
For our part, we are waiting for the announcement of the UN Secretary General on the appointment of his personal envoy, we are waiting for him to visit Cyprus, to stay in Cyprus for some time, so that we can work towards the resumption of talks, not for the sake of talks, but meaningful talks that will lead to the resolution of the Cyprus problem.
Because for some people, possibly justifiably, it has become a bit of a cliché that every year we wish for the same thing, if there is the necessary political will, if all parties involved and I am referring in particular to Turkey, understand the benefits that can accrue for all parties involved through a resolution of the Cyprus problem, then yes, this is an achievable goal of a Cyprus settlement".
(PM/EP/AF)
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