Your Excellencies,

It is a pleasure to be here. Let me congratulate the Czech Republic for successfully completing its first Presidency and for tackling difficult issues in a very charged – to say the least- political and financial environment.

I am looking forward to our discussion and will therefore try to keep my remarks as short as possible.

We meet a day before the European Council and shortly after the European Elections as our Union appears determined to move ahead and face the harsh realities whether in the political or the economic realms. 

Uncertainty seems to be the key word in today’s multi-polar international environment. It is critical that we work in tandem to have the Lisbon treaty in place by the end of the year and to provide the European Union with the appropriate international tools to respond to the crisis we are facing.

I am optimistic that the Council will strike the appropriate balance and reach the necessary conclusions in order to consolidate the progress made in the past few months.

The reform of financial supervision within the EU aimed at setting up a new system to help avoid financial crises in the future is critical in this respect.  As is the ever important challenge of climate change which we cannot afford to ignore, especially at times such as these and of course the question of illegal immigration.

One thing is clear: Genuine solidarity and fair burden sharing between Member States is urgently needed in order to effectively tackle this common European challenge. Our strategy should pull several different levers including enhanced practical cooperation through the establishment the earliest possible of the European Asylum Support Office, strengthening FRONTEX and conducting joint operations on a permanent basis, concluding EU readmission Agreements with key countries including of course our southern neighbor Turkey. 

The Greek side has made its views clear on the highest level and I am confident that the issue will be highlighted at tomorrow’s European Council.

I would like to turn now to a topic that has been out of vogue lately: enlargement.  

Enlargement remains a crucial issue for the European Union. Obviously, such an important political process cannot always be smooth. There are, inevitably, ups and downs and, at present, enlargement is facing important difficulties.

Thanks to work undertaken by the Czech Presidency, the process went forward with both negotiating candidates, Croatia and Turkey. Our firm choice is to work in favor of enlargement while making it clear to any candidate that all conditions and requirements set by the EU should be met fully and in a timely way.

In particular as concerns our neighboring Turkey, I would like to seize this opportunity to recall our firm support in favour of its European perspective. Undoubtedly, a number of issues have to be dealt with before reaching our goal. Those include issues crucial to us such as the normalization of Turkey’s relations with the Republic of Cyprus and the full implementation of the Additional Protocol to the EU - Turkey Association Agreement. 2009 is a decisive year in this respect.

Indeed, as talks on the island’s future continue I cannot stress enough that the key to any progress is in Ankara. The courageous efforts of President Christofias deserve all our support as he works towards ensuring that all Cypriots – whether of Greek or Turkish origin – receive the dividend of peace, stability and prosperity within our European family, they so richly deserve.  

At this point I would like to recall that Turkey has not yet revoked the threat of war against Greece (the so-called casus-belli threat); Turkey also has to improve its record on human and particularly religious rights.  

I would like to stress once again one point: a reformed, democratic Turkey following European rules, endorsing European values and at peace with all its neighbors is in the interest of the EU, of its  region and of course its own people.

No discussion of enlargement can be complete without the Western Balkans.

The Czech Presidency made particular efforts to further enhance the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries in the framework of the Stabilisation and Association Process, and to the 2003 Thessaloniki Agenda.

At this sensitive moment for enlargement, Greece considers that messages addressed to the Western Balkans need to remain strong and clear, and that the EU has to keep the obligations it has undertaken towards the countries of the region. 

During the Czech Presidency two important challenges have appeared with regard to the Western Balkans: the membership applications submitted by Montenegro and Albania and the visa liberalization process. 

On membership our approach is that all applications should be thoroughly examined in a fair and substantial way and that each country should be assessed at its own merit and according to the progress achieved. On the visa liberalization process Greece considers this as the main tool to make the EU Policy in Western Balkans more tangible and to further enhance people-to-people contacts.

Two words on the name issue with Skopje. As you know our negotiators are due to meet again soon. Let me underline that Greece remains committed to reaching a mutually acceptable solution on a basis I have described a number of times in the past.  In this regard we are prepared to be realistic and flexible.