In an interview today with Real FM’s Nikos Chatzinikolaou, Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, when asked about yesterday’s storming of the U.S. Capitol, expressed the hope that America will quickly restore its international image.
“The scenes we saw yesterday in the U.S. shocked international public opinion. It was a shock to the faith and trust we have developed in the democratic institutions of the United States,” he stressed.
Regarding Trump’s stance, he used the words of his father, Ioannis Varvitsiotis, who said that, in politics, being elected isn’t the only thing that’s important. How you step down is even more important. “Unfortunately, Mr. Trump has not exhibited the courage a politician should have when defeated in an election,” he said pointedly.
Asked about Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s visit to Turkey and meeting with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, he noted that, for the most part, it was limited to matters concerning economic relations. He said that the delimitation of maritime zones with Albania will take place through a joint recourse to the International Court in The Hague.
Finally, responding to a question on the EU’s response to the pandemic, the Alternate Minister pointed to the joint financing and procurement of vaccinations for all European citizens, saying that “if Europe hadn’t stepped in, the research on these vaccines would not have been completed. Europe protected us.”
January 7, 2021