“Repowering Europe – Challenges and Opportunities Ahead”
Dear delegates,
Dear friends of EDS,
I am glad to be with you today. I am glad to be with the present and the future of our political family, the European People’s Party.
In this beautiful venue that has been inaugurated just one month ago.
A venue that symbolises the robust and quality development that Cyprus has witnessed under the leadership of the Democratic Rally.
A place that also symbolises what Cyprus has been since the ancient years. A crossing road for civilisations.
Dear friends,
Since our last meeting in Zagreb in 2019, many things have changed in our world.
Things have been difficult for all of us in the past years and the difficult times are not over yet. Economies are facing an energy crisis and inflation.
While our economies were gradually recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic, another shock wave came to challenge our economies and our everyday lives.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine.
A brutal assault on the people of Ukraine without any justification, without any necessity.
We all condemn the Russian invasion in Ukraine in the strongest possible terms. Russia’s invasion is more than an attack on Ukraine, it is an attack on every free country’s right to decide its own future.
Unfortunately, as Cypriots, we know first-hand what war and being refugees means and we are experiencing the tragic consequences of war and of the illegal occupation by Turkey for the past 48 years.
Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974 using the same excuse as Russia in 2022 to attack Ukraine. Under a so-called peace operation.
As Cypriots we have therefore no right to remain silent while this war continues in Ukraine.
As Europeans we must show unity, we must show courage and we must place our common values above all without considering any temporary costs.
Dear friends from Ukraine. I want to reaffirm you today that we will never stop fighting for you at all levels.
This man-made energy crisis must find us united.
We must work together to find those alternative ways that will cut Europe’s energy dependence on Russian fossil fuels.
We should seek for alternative markets in order to avoid any unpleasant events during the coming winter.
To this end, Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean region can play an important role. Various energy projects are taking place in our region, projects that could boost the energy market of the region.
At the same time, we must accelerate our green transition in order to have a truly energy independent Europe.
To achieve that, we will have to face some temporary costs.
But this is the only way forward in order to build a sustainable future for everyone in Europe.
This is also my vision for Cyprus. To become a green and tech island. A goal that we could realise by means of the Next Generation EU fund.
As a governing party, for the last nine years, we were forced to face various crises. The economic crisis, the health crisis and now the energy crisis.
We have achieved to overcome every single crisis and when challenges emerged, we successfully faced them and turned them into new opportunities.
This is not the time to be satisfied though. This is the time to continue further with all the necessary reforms for a truly modern and friendly state for our citizens and the business sector.
And I am confident that we will get there.
This is why the party is running again for the Presidency of Cyprus, with myself as candidate. We have a concrete plan for the country and we are confident that with the support of our European allies, we will deliver it.
I hope that you enjoy your stay in Cyprus and best of luck to everyone running for elections today. I wish to all of you and to the new Bureau to have a successful and fruitful term.
Thank you.
