Cyprus: Press remarks by High Representative Kaja Kallas at the joint press conference with Minister for Foreign Affairs Constantinos Kombos

Check against delivery! 


Dear Constantinos, 

Thank you for welcoming us here in Cyprus and for your hospitality. 

Cyprus will assume the rotating Presidency of the Council in January. We had good discussions about how we can cooperate during this time. I think there are a lot of issues where we see that the same priorities that you have, we also have. 

EU support for Ukraine, what you mentioned, will remain high on our agenda so long as Russia’s war against Ukraine shows no signs of ending. The European Union is already Ukraine’s largest supporter. We have provided €177.5 billion in overall support. We have trained over 80,000 Ukrainian troops. We are the biggest investor in Ukraine’s defence industry. But it is clearly not enough. To push back Russia’s war of aggression, Europe must continue to step up.  

The new sanctions package adopted two weeks ago will increase pressure on Russia’s war economy. We target key sectors including energy, finance, and the military-industrial base to deprive Russia of billions of euros to fund its war. 
We also exchanged on the situation in the Middle East. 

Cyprus is the closest you can get to Gaza from the European Union, just an hour away by plane. The stability of Gaza is essential for Cyprus, as well as it for Europe.  

That is why the European Union continues to play an important role there. We are still the main financial contributor in humanitarian aid by far. I really want to thank also Cyprus for its efforts in delivering much needed humanitarian aid through the maritime corridor. This is a clear example of how the European Union and Member States can build on each others’ added value. 

The European Union has also been a consistent supporter of the Palestinian Authority keeping the prospect of a two-state solution alive. 

We are already involved in preparations for reconstruction for when the time comes. 

We also discussed Syria. The coming year will be important to consolidate support to the country and ensure stability in the region. I know that this is an important topic for Cyprus and I will ensure it stays high on the agenda, including for discussions amongst Foreign Ministers. 

Then, of course, we discussed the Cyprus issue. This is also a core matter for European Union-Türkiye relations and for the stability and security of the Eastern Mediterranean. 

The European Union fully backs the UN-led process and the efforts of UN Secretary General Guterres and his Personal Envoy. And his work can pave the way to formal settlement talks.  Of course, it is neither Türkiye nor the EU that will govern the island of Cyprus in the future, it is the people of Cyprus, the Greek and Turkish Cypriots, who must live together and find solutions to common challenges. Both communities need a sustainable solution. 

We also discussed relations with Türkiye more broadly. We have had positive engagement with Türkiye in areas of common interest. Türkiye remains a key partner for the European Union and a significant regional actor, but the deterioration of democratic standards judicial independence and the fundamental rights have de facto frozen its enlargement process since 2018. 

Let me close by saying that I am confident that our cooperation will continue to strengthen Europe’s stability and security. I look forward to working closely with you and all your representatives throughout the Presidency. And I really want to thank you for all the work you have done so far. I have really enjoyed your advice and working together with you also in the Foreign Affairs Council. I am sure this will continue during the Presidency. 

Thank you very much. 

Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-280100  


Q&A. 

Q. A question for the High Representative. Just picking up from what the Foreign Minister said regarding more active engagement of the EU in the Middle East, Cyprus has presented its own plan for Gaza. It has to do with delivery of aid, building materials and an assortment of other clauses. I just wanted to ask you if the EU has adopted this plan as its own, if this plan is being promoted as an EU plan, and what is being done, what is the EU doing to actively promote this and push this? And if you could give us on details, where it's at this moment and what it might include even on the EU side. 

Immediately, when President Trump came up with the plan, we took the all the 20 points of this plan - or 19 points of the plan - and put our contribution, where European Union can come in, and what we can contribute in terms of humanitarian aid, but also when we talk about stabilization force - for example, we have two missions. We have the EUBAM Rafah border crossing mission. We the civilian mission, EUPOL COPPS that is training the police. We were looking also whether we can extend the mandate of those missions to be contributing to the stabilization force. Great minds think alike. So actually, a lot of points were really the same as in the Cyprus plan. This is also something that we have been discussing and seeing - what more can we do. Of course, right now it is the question of having this sustainable peace, and the day after. We talked about this today as well, when it comes to governance of Gaza, and how does it really work in practice to be very, very practical in terms of sustainable peace and stability in the region. We are working hand in hand, and those points, I think they're also public that we put forward. 

Q. Commission published its report about Türkiye, in which we saw a series of backlights in almost every sector. My question is, is it possible for the European Union to consider Türkiye as a reliable partner enough to allow the country to be part of the European Union defense architecture? 

Well, European Union defence architecture is our own defence architecture. We are trying to boost our own defence industry. But at the same time, all the Member States are increasing their defence expenditure, and when the defence industry is not ready. That means also that some of the components have to be procured outside. When the instruments that we have in place, for example, SAFE, it is very clear. It is an open instrument, balancing the different the need of defence readiness and support to Ukraine, at the same time. The main focus is the European own defense industry. Now on with the Türkiye. We are working on different areas of common interest. But of course, like we discussed today, I mean, we also have worries with the way Turkey is operating in many of the fields, and the concerns our Member States have. These are all taken into account. 

Thank you very much. 

Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-280100