In his speech during the parliamentary debate and passing of the bill on ‘Regulations for the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union’, Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis sent a message to all of the political parties in support of the national effort, restraint and composure.
Specifically, Mr. Varvitsiotis stressed that “defence of our sovereign rights has always been our goal. The voice coming from Parliament must be unanimous and united,” and that “we are committed to defending our sovereign rights by any possible means. And we will always shape our international positions with respect for International Law. We are clear and frank in expressing our positions. We express our desire for the peaceful resolution of disputes, but we also express our determination to defend our sovereign rights. This is a position expressed not only by Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the current prime minister, but also at all times by the Greek state, our political leaderships,” he underscored.
In his speech, the Alternate Minister referred to the Haftar visit to Athens, stressing that his meeting with the Greek Prime Minister sends the message that Greece is present in the developments in Libya. “It is a fact that, while we are discussing things here, the Prime Minister is meeting in the next room with the Libyan field marshal, sending a clear message that Greece is present in the developments in Libya. The Prime Minister has also asked the German Chancellor to allow our country to participate in the Berlin process – a process that started a number of years ago and from which Greece has been excluded. Today, for the first time, we are pursuing participation on terms of ensuring peace in the region, a viable solution to the Libya problem, and restoration of law and order,” he noted. “We always defend international law and order. Not just when it suits us. As a country, we exercise policy in our international environs, cultivating relations of friendship and trust with all of the states, and always serving the rules and principles of International Law,” he added.
With regard to Brexit, he highlighted that the country’s goal is to “not lose” from any fluctuations in the value of the pound, to protect Greek exports and to benefit from the situation. This is why we are legislating these provisions and why, this past September, we launched an information campaign on the operational plan we have created to avoid any gaps.
“The Brexit challenge requires that all of us show diligence, flexibility and readiness, because we believe that our diplomatic and economic/trade ties with Great Britain – in addition to their long history – are of vital importance. And we believe that, based on this economic and political history, we must further facilitate these transactions,” he noted.
Finally, Mr. Varvitsiotis welcomed the fact that almost all of the parties voted in favour of the bill, which was approved in principle, in its individual articles and in full by a wide majority.
January 17, 2020