Ahead of assuming the Presidency of the European Union, Cyprus sets as its central goal the transformation of the EU into a global leader in an era of geopolitical upheaval, said Deputy Permanent Representative to the EU, Georgios Ioannides.
Speaking at the 4th Brussels Delphi Economic Forum, in Brussels, Deputy Permanent Representative to the EU, Georgios Ioannides on 6 November, referred to the priorities and preparations of the Cypriot Presidency and said that the goal is for everyone to know that Cyprus is an honest broker.
Defining success during Cyprus’s EU Presidency, Ioannides emphasized that while procedural achievements such as reaching general approaches, partial agreements, and closing legislative files are important, they are not the ultimate measure. "The most important for us is the legacy that we want to live behind us. We want everyone to know that we are honest brokers. We do not have an agenda. Honestly, we do not have an agenda and you will see us, even when we’ll be discussing maritime policy, which is hugely important, we will have our EU hat on, not the Cyprus hat on" he added, underlining that Cyprus will be the builder of trust. "This is the facilitation of consensus, and the legacy we want to leave behind us: that we want to deliver results for our citizens, for our businesses, and where we want, when this presidency will finish, people to say, ‘Cypriots, indeed, were honest brokers’" he went on.
Addressing the current geopolitical context, the Deputy Permanent Representative said that "in the previous decades, we had unprecedented levels of cooperation and prosperity. This does not exist anymore. We are in a situation where we are looking for viable alternatives to this world order. And we believe of Cyprus that the viable alternative to the world order today is the European Union."
Ioannides explained that the Presidency will focus on how the EU can combine "the EU's values with competitiveness, how to combine our sovereignty with openness, how to combine our regulations with innovation." He added that "we want not only to adapt to change, because we are living in a period of flux of change, but yet shape it," underling that "strategic autonomy is no longer a choice, it is a necessity."
Cyprus, as he noted, will place particular emphasis on the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, "aiming to bring the Union closer to the Eastern Mediterranean and to the greater Middle East." He explained that "our area is very important, it is a very important initial priority of our presidency," and added that "we will be exercising our presidency with responsibility, being a reliable partner to all member states and beyond the Union, being an honest broker, being a country that balances the interest of all and promotes the interest of the Union to the world."
Regarding the EU's focus on the Eastern Mediterranean, he stated:"We are determined to transform our geographic location, which is in a very complex, volatile region, into a blessing. We believe this. We have matured, we have developed, we have turned our neighborhood indeed into a blessing," citing examples such as humanitarian operations in countries like Lebanon, Sudan, Israel, Iran, and the maritime corridor to Gaza. "We don’t see a shift in attention. We want to broaden the vision of the EU towards the southern neighborhood."
The Cyprus EU Presidency will promote the green and digital transitions, with the goal of "putting people and businesses first." He stressed that "green transition, digital transition, are priorities, always in the mind that we set the general business and people," and mentioned that "we use AI in the benefit of, for example, curing diseases, preventing and predicting natural disasters."
According to the Ambassador, one of the central themes of the Presidency will be water resilience, an issue that, as he noted, "is of concern to most countries of Southeast Europe." He mentioned the fact that "water scarcity and droughts have become an issue for many of us due to the climate crisis."
"We are a member of the Med 9. We will be working with our Med 9 partners, but we will also be working with everyone to ensure we have the necessary funds, because you need funding to deal with droughts, with fires, and the necessary networks to mobilize everyone to address this survival issue, which is important not only for us but for everyone," he added.
When asked by the moderator, journalist Alexandra Voudouri of Kathimerini about the challenges Cyprus might face during its Presidency, given the difficult balances in the European Parliament, the Deputy Permanent Representative highlighted the importance of cooperation with the European Parliament, as well as the preparatory work already done at this level. "I believe that my team and myself and the Permanent Representative, we have invested in relations with the European Parliament tremendously. We are confident that the name we have created over the years, as facilitators of consensus, as builders of trust and guardians of unity, will bear fruit" he said.
He concluded that "we have done our homework, we are doing our homework, and we are confident that we will be successful for the Union."
During the discussion, the Permanent Representative of Greece to the EU, Ioannis Vrailas, spoke about the priorities of the Greek Presidency, which will follow in a year and a half, in the second half of 2027.
(Source: CNA)
