Deputy Foreign Minister Dimitris Kourkoulas’ speech at the Economist Conference (16th Roundtable with the Government of Greece) on “Transforming uncertainty into stability, wisdom and growth: U.S.-European relations in the context of geopolitical and geoeconomic competition”
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure for me to be here today and to address you in my new capacity as Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece, during a time of great flux and uncertainty, not only for Greece and for Europe, but also for the global system as a whole.
Indeed, these past couple of years have brought to the fore exactly how deep our interdependence has grown, as the global financial system knows no boundaries, national or otherwise, nor does it distinguish between public and private interests. The global economy is intertwined at all levels and no financial institution, state or regional organization is immune or isolated from its ups and downs.
Greece has long acknowledged this aspect of foreign policy and has for many years now realized that the pursuit of strong political relations depends also, to a large extent, on the ability to identify and promote mutually beneficial growth, stability and prosperity for our peoples.
In the same vein, my country has always been a staunch champion of the European project, confident in our belief that a united Europe can achieve much more for the well being of its citizens and in the international arena than a fragmented one.
It is no coincidence, after all, that what is now increasingly assuming the characteristics of a political union began as a coal and steel community before transforming into an economic one and, hopefully, tomorrow, into a genuine functioning political one.
Despite today’s rather negative perception of Europe and noticeable market frustration, we must not lose sight of the tremendous leaps and bounds that have been made over five decades and of the benefits that have accrued, not only to European member states, but also to the global system as a whole, from this European project. The current crisis must not dissuade us from this historic journey.
Within this environment, the new Greek government is determined to reassert Greece’s presence and role in Europe, in our neighbourhood and beyond. By reaffirming our commitment to structural reforms and fiscal discipline and by enhancing competitiveness and accelerating privatizations, we expect to regain market confidence, promote growth and develop a truly attractive business environment. The economic crisis does not hinder Greece from exercising and active, multifaceted foreign policy based on respect for national sovereignty and for international law and the national sovereign rights deriving therefrom.
At the same time, and with a view to Greece’s upcoming EU Presidency in the first half of 2014, we intend to revitalize efforts aimed at pushing forward EU enlargement for all the countries of the Western Balkans. There is no doubt in our minds that European integration is the best way to achieve lasting peace, stability and prosperity in the region.
Greece played a leading role in shaping the European policy that led to the accession of two Balkan states – Bulgaria and Romania – to the EU. With the same resolve, we will continue to support the European perspective of all the countries of the western Balkans – including those with whom there are significant disagreements – requiring, of course, that they implement reforms and comply with all the criteria, including good neighbourly relations.
This holds true for our eastern neighbor Turkey as well. Greece has always supported Turkey’s European perspective and has always tried – and continues to try – to maintain good relations based on mutual trust and respect for international law.
As of yesterday, the Republic of Cyprus holds the rotating EU Presidency. We are certain that the Republic of Cyprus will carry out the task of the Presidency with complete success; a task that, as we all know, is particularly hard at the current time, due to the economic state of affairs and the instability prevailing in the region. The Republic of Cyprus will successfully handle the difficult but vital negotiations on the adoption of the EU financial framework for 2014-2020. It is obvious that the EU expects everyone, and candidate countries in particular, to respect European institutions and not continue creating artificial problems – pretexts – that can only hurt their accession course.
We will continue to contribute towards the achievement of a just, viable and sustainable solution to the Cyprus problem. The achievement of a solution will upgrade the role of the EU and contribute to stability in the Eastern Mediterranean region.
We envisage a bright future for South Eastern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, and the tectonic changes under way in the Arab world attest to the fact that the European Union is uniquely placed to support the promotion of freedom, democracy and human rights and, on this basis, forge new relationships with the peoples of the region and the new political forces coming to the fore.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In this rapidly changing world, as we face numerous and multifaceted challenges, the need to cooperate and forge close ties between the U.S. and the EU is imperative.
The Greek side has always put particular emphasis on transatlantic relations and has worked systematically to broaden the scope of the EU’s relations with the U.S.
This stance on our part is founded on our conviction that the EU and the U.S. share not just common interests, but common values and ideals. For this reason, our common responsibilities with regard to the international system are much greater than those of other major players in the international system.
The vast new challenges at arose from the economic crisis that broke out in 2007, and that continue to rock Europe and the global economy, render close transatlantic cooperation even more invaluable. The current crisis shows beyond the shadow of a doubt the close interdependency of our economies and, in the final analysis, our shared fate. Both sides of the transatlantic collaboration have now realized the need for timely and effective measures. The decisions of last week’s European Council move in this direction.
We welcome the clear messages regarding the manner in which to confront the current crisis; messages that were sent by the EU-U.S. summit meeting of 28 November, in Washington. We support the upgrading of the Transatlantic Economic Council for economic and commercial cooperation and strategy development. We are prepared to discuss with our American friends other ways to render strategically vital transatlantic cooperation even more effective. In other words, we want to utilize the strategic depth of Greek-American relations that began in the difficult time of the cold war, so that we can contribute to ambitious and effective EU-U.S. cooperation.
We believe that both sides have taken steps that allow for optimism regarding the future of transatlantic relations. The American side has fully realized that 21st century Europe is not the Europe of the 1940s, the 1960s or even the 1980s. And the Europeans have taken important steps toward better intra-European coordination on political issues, on defense and foreign policy, and on confronting the crisis in the eurozone. The results of the recent European Council make us optimistic that we are moving in this direction.
Time is not on our side. History, and future generations, will judge us on our ability to move forward as a whole, and not on making short-term narrow gains or deferring difficult decisions. The new Greek government will do everything in its power to help in this direction.
July 2, 2012