The unanimous decision by the European Council to give Ukraine and Moldova the status of EU candidate-countries was an important message said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during a press conference after European leaders met in Brussels on Friday. He reiterated Greece’s support for the European prospects of the Western Balkans and said that Greece was satisfied by the conclusions adopted by the Council regarding Turkey.
“The European Council had as its most important result the unanimous decision to give Ukraine and Moldova the status of candidate countries, with the same prospect for Georgia and Bosnia,” Mitsotakis said, adding that this move “sends the message that Ukraine’s place is in Europe, provided that it implements the requirements. Europe’s message is important without diluting the complexity of the accession process.”
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The Greek prime minister also stated that he had repeated that the Western Balkans have a place in Europe but that these countries must move faster in this direction
“I repeat that we are fully covered by the conclusions that were unanimously adopted and which express concern about Turkey’s provocations,” said Mitsotakis regarding Greek-Turkish affairs, stating that they “call on [Turkey] to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all member-states and to de-escalate the tension which it is cultivating in the Eastern Mediterranean, so as to promote peace and stability in the wider region.”
On economic issues, the prime minister said that the European Commission had been tasked with completing its proposals for severing the link between the price of natural gas and that of electricity by the end of the summer, while adding that the government will continue to support households and businesses as far as fiscal responsibility allowed in the meantime.