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The President of the Republic of Cyprus, Mr Nikos Christodoulides, upon his arrival at the European Council Summit, in his statements to journalists as regards the Heads of the Institutions, contemplated that deliberations will be reached today, so that the European Council will continue with discussions on other important issues, like the strategic agenda of the European Union (EU).

"The deliberations of the Heads of the Institutions continue. I wish to reiterate that our aspiration and expectation –and we are striving towards this direction, based on our capacity– is that an outcome will be reached today," the President of the Republic of Cyprus stated.

President Christodoulides added: "We have to decide today. I will also have a meeting with the Prime Minister of Italy, exclusively on this issue. I sincerely hope, I repeat, that we will conclude today, so that we can move on to discuss [other] important issues on the agenda. The EU's strategic agenda is there. For us, the strategic autonomy of the EU is of paramount importance, and when we refer to strategic autonomy, we are not merely talking about issues of defence and security, but also of the securing of energy supplies of the EU, as well as of matters of competitiveness. Moreover, it is important that Migration is discussed, and I hope that there will be an agreement in the conclusions on the Middle East. Given the developments and the alarming information we are all receiving, we are aware of how the situation is. The Republic of Cyprus, as an EU member state, has received warnings, in quotation marks and without quotation marks, if you like. We view other states attempting to trigger the situation, therefore today, as the EU, we need to emerge strongly, with clear messages. The Republic of Cyprus, as the EU member state closest to the region and, unlike other countries, upholds excellent relations with all neighbouring countries, will continue to uphold this position, which is always expressed in a positive way."

Responding to a question on whether there is a specific request from the Prime Minister of Italy, Ms Giorgia Meloni, President Christodoulides stated: "We spoke last night with the Prime Minister of Italy and again today. We will meet when she arrives in Brussels. I wish to be perfectly honest, I share some of her concerns. I made a relevant intervention last week at the informal European Council. But we need to find a solution where we must all, in unity, move towards reaching important decisions as regards the Heads of Institutions. It is in this framework that my meeting with the Prime Minister of Italy will ensue."

In replying to another question on the deliberations of the Heads of Institutions, President Christodoulides stated: "We are waiting for the decisions. After all, based on the EU Treaties, every two and a half years there is a discussion as regards the President of the European Council and, if you like, history so far has manifested that the President of the European Council is reappointed. Therefore, it is the EU Treaties which set the framework of our discussions."

Asked whether the European Peoples’ Party raised any other issues at the European Council, the President of the Republic of Cyprus stated: “Our discussion was held on two issues. Initially, as regards the Heads of the Institutions, and secondly, the strategic agenda. I need to reiterate that there are many challenges. In July we have to conclude on the matter of the President of the Commission at the European Parliament Summit, so that we can carry on. There are numerous issues that we need to deal with speedily. There are many developments that we need to consider. There are elections in the United States, in Britain, the developments in the Middle East, which, you can understand, cause apprehension. In the EU we need to be prepared to deal with all of this and refrain from having endless discussions. Therefore, we need to have a process in place, in which nobody would feel excluded, nor isolated. I reiterate that, within our capabilities and our good relations with the Prime Minister of Italy, we need to find a common solution."

Asked to comment on his meeting with the Personal Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General, Ms María Ángela Holguín, the President of the Republic of Cyprus stated: "It was a fruitful discussion. It was not a general one, it was a very specific one, about the ways to create the conditions for the resumption of the talks. Therefore, we discussed specifically about aspects of the Cyprus problem. It is for this reason that I felt the need to call a meeting of the National Council next week, so that the leaders of the parliamentary parties can be present again, in order to consider jointly the next steps."

(AP)