Dear Colleagues,
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and Foreign Affairs is convening today to debate the ratification of a major agreement between Greece and Canada, which was signed on 28 May 2011 by then Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas and Canadian Finance Minister Tony Clement, who is of Greek Cypriot heritage.
I note here that the Agreement was signed during an important visit carried out by Canadian Prime minister Stephen Harper to Greece; a visit during which he expressed his confidence in the efforts of the Greek economy to overcome the crisis, and had a number of meetings with the political leadership of the country: President Karolos Papoulias and then Prime Minister George Papandreou.
This Agreement was ratified by Canada in February 2012. It is coming up for ratification in Greece with some delay due to the general state of affairs and the long pre-election period leading up to June 2012, when the new government was formed under Prime Minister Samaras.
I note that the contents of this Agreement were vetted carefully not only by the services of the Foreign Ministry, but also by the services of many other co-competent ministries, which, as you can see, have all co-signed the ratification bill being brought before you today.
Dear Colleagues,
You are aware that Greece traditionally maintains excellent relations with Canada, our main link with which is the major Greek Canadian community present in all the major cities of Canada. From Toronto to the capital, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec in the east, to Vancouver on the west coast. This is a particularly dynamic Greek Diaspora community that honors the name of Greece, distinguishing itself in many sectors of the multicultural Canadian environment, including sports, academia, science, culture and business.
As an indication, I will refer to two instances: This summer, Greece was visited by the Greek Canadian Judge Andromahi Karakatsani, a member of the Canadian Supreme Court. Professor Andreas Gerolymatos, Director of the Chair of Modern Greek Studies and Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, was honoured last year by President Papoulias for his pioneering method of promoting the Greek language and culture.
Dear Colleagues,
In recent years, Greek-Canadian bilateral relations and contacts have been strengthened even further, with particular emphasis on modernization of the institutional framework governing them. In addition to the Canadian Prime Minister’s visit to Athens, which I have already mentioned, the President of the Canadian Senate, Noel Kinsella, visited Greece just a month ago.
In fact, this is an important year, because we are celebrating 70 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. In this context, Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos will be travelling to Canada next week to meets with the country’s political leadership and to participate in the events celebrating this 70th anniversary – events being hosted by the Canadian Parliament.
The Agreement on Youth Mobility is part of this framework, and we are pleased that the proposed ratification coincides with this important anniversary. This is a pioneering agreement for Greece, and it gives the opportunity to young Greeks and Canadians to learn about each other’s culture and society, strengthening through these exchanges the friendly ties linking the two countries. It is an agreement that will be implemented on an equal and mutual basis.
Dear Colleagues,
Before I set out the main points of the Agreement, I would like to make it clear that it in no case has as its goal the immigration, or brain drain, that one might think it would entail. It is not aimed at finding permanent employment in Canada or Greece. It is a program with a single, multifaceted goal: for Greek and Canadian youths to become familiar – through contact with another culture, other languages – with the day-to-day life and society of the other country, the other people. This will happen through the experience they will gain from travelling, living and working in the other country. It is hoped that these experiences will contribute to the personal and professional development of the young people who benefit from the implementation of the Agreement.
Such programmes have been implemented by other countries with great success for many years now. Canada itself has signed and is implementing such programmes with some 30 other countries, including 18 EU member states – Germany, France, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Sweden, Denmark – and other countries, such as Japan, Australia and Mexico.
An initial stage provides for a pilot implementation with the participation of a small number of Canadians and Greeks – 100 to 200 young people. The goal is to expand this number in the coming years.
For purposes of comparison, I note that the ceiling for participation of youth in this programme within the framework of the Agreements Canada has concluded with Germany and France is 5,000 and 14,000, respectively, per year. As it says in the Agreement, through streamlined procedures expressly provided for by the national legislation of each country, the young Greek and Canadian citizens, from 18 to 35 years of age, will be able to travel, reside and work temporarily, for up to a year, in the other country, provided they fall into one of the three categories provided for by the Agreement:
- Graduates of post-secondary or tertiary educational institutions in their country who want to gain work experience in the other country and have a prearranged employment contract, or
- Students at post-secondary or tertiary educational institutions who want to do a prearranged internship in their field of study and as part of their academic programme, and
- Those who want to travel to the other country on vacation, with the potential to work temporarily to supplement the money they have to cover expenses.
Each youth may enter the programme one additional time, in a different category than the first time they entered. It goes without saying that Greece has borne in mind its legal obligations as an EU member state and a party to the Schengen Treaty.
I would also like to note that – as pointed out in the Report of the General Accounting Office of the State accompanying the draft of the ratification bill, this Agreement has no financial cost for our country.
Dear Colleagues,
The Greeks who benefit from the implementation of the Agreement will have the opportunity – in a large, modern, democratic and friendly country – to broaden their horizons, enrich their practical knowledge, experience, academic or business training and, in the end, their CVs. They will thus gain, among other things, a comparative advantage in their careers and for opportunities for future employment in today’s difficult, competitive national and international environment. Correspondingly, the Canadian youth who get to know Greece within the framework of this Agreement will be added to the store of friends of Hellenic culture in Greece and Canada, thus enriching the human ties, including the large Greek Canadian community, linking the two countries.
We believe that this opportunity we are giving to the youth of each country is also an opportunity for all of us in the future.
Allow me to close with a more general observation. All this time, the government, the Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister and all the leadership and personnel of the Foreign Ministry have begun a major operation aimed at rehabilitating Greece’s image abroad. This is a difficult battle that we are fighting through strategy, planning and persistence. This is a condition for Greece’s attracting serious and mutually beneficial investments and getting back on the path of economic growth, progress and prosperity.
The first signs of a change in our image are already visible. There has been a change in the climate for Greece in recent months, and particularly of late. This was made more apparent at the recent European Council. The Foreign Ministry, Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos, the political leadership of the Ministry and the Ministry personnel will redouble their efforts in this battle in the coming time. It is my hope, of course, that we will have as our allies and supporters in this effort the members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and Foreign Affairs. Because, despite any differences we have within the framework of our democratic system, we are linked by a love of our country and the conviction that Greece can emerge from this crisis and regain its rightful role on the international stage.
Thank you.
October 23, 2012