Follow the mail on Twitter.

• +
• -
• Text size

Related content

Topic tags

Cyprus, Jose Manuel Barroso, president Christofias

PRESIDENT Demetris Christofias and members of Cabinet met yesterday with the European Commission in Brussels for a series of contacts in relation to Cyprus upcoming Presidency of the EU council on July 1.

Christofias and the head of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, held a joint meeting with the College of Commissioners.

Barroso said at a news conference later that he and Christofias had had a very substantive meeting where they had looked at the priorities of the presidency.

“So I can tell you that we have seen at first hand the excellent state of preparations for the Cypriot Presidency...,” Barroso said.

“It is important that during the next Presidency...to make clear and to explain to our citizens that we are going through a very challenging period where some structural reforms are in fact very challenging, but that there will be light at the end of the tunnel and that together we should work for growth enhancing reforms in Europe,” he added.

Barroso said that it would be during the Cypriot presidency that the EU would 

conclude negotiations on the financial perspective for the next period 2014-2020.

He was referring to the promotion of the EU’s growth strategy which involves targets for the year 2020 on employment, innovation, education, social inclusion, and the climate and energy.

“We need the structural reforms… but we also need some investment at a European level for achieving higher degrees of growth in the medium term,” Barosso said.

Christofias said that Cyprus would promote the principles of solidarity and effectiveness.

“Without a doubt our union is facing a serious socioeconomic crisis with negative consequences to its institutional unity. It is, however, an imperative need to support member states’ cohesion and unity,” Christofias said.

Barroso said the Cypriot authorities had taken important steps over the last year in terms of fiscal consolidation. “The Commission believes that Cyprus is on target to reach a deficit of 2.7 per cent by 2012, in line with our recommendations,” he said.

He also discussed the Cyprus talks with Christofias, he said. “President Christofias knows my position well. I fully support the UN process and the need for both sides to make steps forward. It is of course important not to let the sands of history to slip through our hands. It is a difficult and very challenging process, but I have always encouraged different parties to remain committed to that project,” he said.

Christofias was accompanied to Brussels by members of his cabinet: the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Labour, Agriculture, Commerce, and the Communications Minister as acting Finance Minister. The government spokesman and the deputy minister for European Affairs were also part of the delegation.

Commerce Minister Praxoulla Antoniadou said that the issue of supporting small and medium-sized enterprises was “on top of the agenda”.

Acting Finance Minister Efthymios Flourentzos said that one of Cyprus’ priorities was “strengthening economic growth, which will lead to the creation of new jobs”.

Members of the Cyprus delegation held bilateral meeting with the College’s commissioners.

They return today.