During his address at the International Conference titled ‘The European Concept of the State as a “Public Service” and Crises’, organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Public Law Organisation and the Prefecture of Attica, Alternate Foreign Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis referred to the new relationship of trust cultivated between the state and citizens during the pandemic, while underlining the importance of public health and the continuation of economic activity. More specifically, Mr Varvitsiotis referred to the initiatives the government has undertaken to progress the digital transformation of Greece’s public administration in order to resolve the problems of the past and address the economic consequences of the crisis. In his words, the government has a vision and an action plan to reform the state and the economy, aiming at creating a new model for economic prosperity and growth, adding that leveraging the Recovery Fund will play a crucial role in this direction. In his capacity as Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the Alternate Minister also referred to the priorities of the current Greek Chairmanship of the Council of Europe, stressing the importance of signing the Athens Declaration, a legal text that will herald a new era in the protection of fundamental rights, the rule of law and democracy during a pandemic. “Never underestimate how much a pandemic can affect the core values of our world; we must always be on the side of defenders of such core values, without which we can address neither pandemics nor the economic challenges that face us”, he concluded.
September 29, 2020