Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis’ speech at the event to mark the 40th anniversary of Greece’s accession to the European Union, themed “Conference on the Future of Europe – For a More Coherent Europe” – Main points (Lamia)

“Europe is not just our economic shield or the means through which we have witnessed our lives change. It is not only our economic and ideological shelter. It is also our safety haven. It is an area of free movement, which we must think of as strong”, Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis stressed today in the event themed “Conference on the Future of Europe – For a More Coherent Europe”, held in Lamia and co-organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Region of Central Greece. The event had the form of a debate with physical presence, but also online participation, of citizens from the whole range of social and professional life, including students and farmers, effectively opening the dialogue on the Future of Europe.

In particular, Mr. Varvitsiotis reminded what Europe achieved in managing the pandemic last year, describing as a “crucial step” the agreement on the 750 billion Recovery and Resilience Facility, which was reached after difficult negotiations between the 27 member states, negotiations in which he himself participated last summer.

“It is the first time Europe raises money from the financial markets, issuing bonds on its behalf and then proportionally allocating funds to the member states, without affecting our debt profile. This has never been done before”, he pointed out, adding that these resources will be used in three fields: Green Growth, Digital Transition and addressing the economic consequences of the pandemic.

The Alternate Minister then referred to the solidarity shown by the European Union towards Greece, especially throughout the previous difficult year, both when the European leadership as a whole declared in Evros that these are the borders of Europe and we must protect them, as well as in the case of Greek-Turkish relations, which have now become EU-Turkish relations, with the whole of the European Union now calling on Turkey to take significant steps to de-escalate, to return to dialogue and to respect International Law and the UN Security Council resolutions on Cyprus.

Responding to relevant questions from citizens, he pointed out that “the major problem for Europe and the Euro-Atlantic security system in general is the role of Turkey, which has distanced itself from the European acquis and from what is a key condition for EU membership: compliance with foreign policy decisions”. “But Turkey has opposed European Council decisions on Libya, the Caucasus, Iraq, Syria and the Gulf. And that is a cause for concern. And so, we have come to discuss the case of Turkey in every European Council”, he added.

In this context, Mr. Varvitsiotis invited all Greeks and especially Youth to actively participate in the Conference on the Future of Europe, an endeavor in which the European Union seeks to open up to its citizens by use of new technologies. As he pointed out, through this Dialogue “we try to give a voice to the citizens, but, above all, to embrace young people, because ultimately where we lack is the participation of young people in political affairs with a powerful voice. We need to give greater heed to their concerns, such as the environmental burden and we are awaiting their ideas on Europe in which they want to live.”

Mr. Christos Staikouras, Minister of Finance, Mr. Fanis Spanos, Regional Governor of Central Greece and Ms. Fotini Asderaki, Associate Professor at the University of Piraeus, holder of the Jean Monnet Chair and President of the Doctoral School of the European Security and Defense College, also participated in the debate, which was moderated by journalist Ms Vicky Kotsimbou.

It is recalled that today’s event launches a series of debates that will take place in all Regions of the country to promote locally the national dialogue on the Future of Europe, whose coordinating role has been taken over by Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Varvitsiotis.

In the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Lamia, where the event was held, a photo exhibition marking the 40 years of Greece’s participation in the European Communities was presented, featuring major milestones and key political figures of Greece’s European course. The photo exhibition will be presented in all Regions of the country.