We will invest the capital from the Cyprus Presidency of the EU to further strengthen the Republic of Cyprus and its citizens, Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Rauuna has said.
She was speaking on 7 July, following the meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign and European Affairs.
The members of the Committee congratulated Raouna on the success of the Cyprus Presidency of the EU.
The Deputy Minister participated in a meeting of the Committee on the results of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU, together with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Constantinos Kombos.
The main focus of the discussion, Raouna said in her statements, was the results of the Cyprus Presidency both for citizens and in institutional matters, "results of a collective effort, of a national mission, which this Government, the President of the Republic, made clear from the very beginning was an opportunity to strengthen our footprint and to deliver tangible results across the entire spectrum of the European Agenda."
She noted that the success of the Cyprus Presidency has been recognised by all institutions, by European leaders "and belongs above all to all Cypriots, to all those who have worked throughout this time," thanking the "hundreds of Civil Service executives and external collaborators who worked with real dedication to achieve this result."
Referring to some of the data she presented to the Committee, Raouna said that during the six-month period, the Cyprus Presidency was present for 70 negotiations, trilogues with the European Parliament and the European Commission, and a particularly increased number, in 32 legislative files. “We completed 27 of these 32 files, a particularly high success rate, around 85%,” she added.
Raouna noted that, of these agreements, an agreement has been reached under the leadership of the Cyprus Presidency on legislative files that required unanimity, but also that had been on the negotiating table for more than a decade.
An indicative example, she said, is the agreement to strengthen air transport rights.
“Our vision, and the pillar around which we worked for all our five priorities, was to strengthen the autonomy of the European Union and also the global footprint of the European Union,” Raouna said.
"Autonomy not only in matters of defence and security, but in areas such as competitiveness, the economy, energy and of course the social cohesion of the European Union because this presidency leaves a significant social footprint behind," she added.
She also noted that, organisationally, "it was an extremely demanding undertaking not only for the Republic of Cyprus, which is one of the smallest member states, but for all member states of the Union."
"There was an impeccable organisation of all the meetings in Cyprus, around 300 meetings," Raouna said, noting that for the first time Cyprus hosted an informal summit of European Union leaders and at the same time President Christodoulides hosted, along with the institutions, leaders from the region.
"We took advantage of our geographical position, the excellent relations we have with countries in the region, we made them available to the European Union, and this has been recognised," she pointed out.
Raouna reiterated what she had said to the Committee, that this six-month cycle of the Cyprus Presidency had closed but a new cycle begins. "And in this new cycle we will invest this capital of the Cyprus Presidency to bring results, to further strengthen the Republic of Cyprus and its citizens," she said.
"The Cyprus Presidency has proven that Cyprus can, that public officials can, bring about these essentially important results," she said, noting that it is important that this coordination mechanism that was activated during the Cyprus Presidency continues to function, "and in this way we will work."
Raouna said that a written review of the results of the Cyprus Presidency will be presented to Parliament, as provided by the relevant legislation.
The members of the Committee expressed their congratulations to Raouna and to all those who contributed to the success of the Cyprus Presidency.
Raouna noted during the discussion that it took 2.5 years of preparation and very close monitoring of all issues "and with absolute dedication to the role of honest mediator."
She said, among other things, that the Cyprus Presidency chaired 1,600 meetings and hosted more than 25,000 participants in Cyprus, achieved 41 general approaches, closed 10 legislative proposals, while achieving "historic results" regarding enlargement.
"We are the country that, despite the forecasts," she said, put the first numbers on the table regarding the Multiannual Financial Framework, noting that negotiations are continuing and will be difficult.
Responding to questions from Members of Parliament, Raouna stated that in the return regulation agreed during the Cyprus Presidency, it was the Cyprus Presidency that included a clause in the operative part on the respect for international law. She added that a monitoring mechanism was incorporated by the Commission and that they called on the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration to assist in the implementation of the regulation.
Regarding the €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine, Raouna stated that, in the first tranche of the amount for the first year, €45 billion, it is expected that the EU contribution will be approximately €2 million.
When asked how the Cyprus Presidency's capital will be utilised, Raouna stated that it will be utilised at the negotiating table, noting that there are very important negotiations currently underway in Brussels, such as those on the Multiannual Financial Framework.
She also said that they will be utilised for the Cyprus issue. She noted that we have already had tangible results, referring to the vote of some member states during the recent Council of Europe vote, adding that for the first time their vote in favour of the Republic of Cyprus was differentiated.
In his statements after the meeting, the Chairman of the Committee, DISY MP, Giorgos Karoullas, referring to the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the EU, said that "serious achievements have been made", emphasising that "any results must be utilised for the benefit of the Republic of Cyprus and the developments in the Cyprus issue for the reunification of Cyprus as well as for the international presence of the Republic of Cyprus."
(Source: InBusinessNews)
